tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91652963485123736232018-11-05T02:25:57.455-08:00Your Brain After ChemoYour Brain After Chemo: A blog on the cognitive effects of cancer treatment: problems with memory, concentration, word retrieval + multitaskingIdelle Davidsonnoreply@blogger.comBlogger83125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-8876166491749265072015-02-16T14:46:00.003-08:002015-02-17T15:26:11.841-08:00In Rats, Transplanting Human Neural Stem Cells Restores Cognitive Function <span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This is an intriguing study out of UC Irvine with results reported in the February 15, 2015 issue of <a href="http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/75/4/676.abstract" target="_blank">Cancer Research</a>. I'm wondering if there's a window of opportunity. For example, were this to be valid for human trial, would transplantation reverse "chemo brain" in those still struggling years after cancer treatment? &nbsp;I hope research continues with success...Idelle</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">See more below in this&nbsp;press release&nbsp;from the American Assoc. for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). &nbsp;</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />Irvine, Calif. -- Human neural stem cell treatments are showing promise for reversing learning and memory deficits after chemotherapy, according to UC Irvine researchers.<br /><br />In preclinical studies using rodents, they found that stem cells transplanted one week after the completion of a series of chemotherapy sessions restored a range of cognitive functions, as measured one month later using a comprehensive platform of behavioral testing. In contrast, rats not treated with stem cells showed significant learning and memory impairment.<br /><br />The frequent use of chemotherapy to combat multiple cancers can produce severe cognitive dysfunction, often referred to as "chemo brain," which can persist and manifest in many ways long after the end of treatments in as many as 75 percent of survivors - a problem of particular concern with pediatric patients.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />"Our findings provide the first solid evidence that transplantation of human neural stem cells can be used to reverse chemotherapeutic-induced damage of healthy tissue in the brain," said Charles Limoli, a UCI professor of radiation oncology.<br /><br />Many chemotherapeutic agents used to treat disparate cancer types trigger inflammation in the hippocampus, a cerebral region responsible for many cognitive abilities, such as learning and memory. This inflammation can destroy neurons and other cell types in the brain.<br /><br />Additionally, these toxic compounds damage the connective structure of neurons, called dendrites and axons, and alter the integrity of synapses - the vital links that permit neurons to pass electrical and chemical signals throughout the brain. Limoli compares the process to a tree being pruned of its branches and leaves.<br /><br />Consequently, the affected neurons are less able to transmit important neural messages that underpin learning and memory.<br /><br />"In many instances, people experience severe cognitive impairment that's progressive and debilitating," Limoli said. "For pediatric cancer patients, the results can be particularly devastating, leading to reduced IQ, asocial behavior and diminished quality of life."<br /><br />For the UCI study, adult neural stem cells were transplanted into the brains of rats after chemotherapy. They migrated throughout the hippocampus, where they survived and differentiated into multiple neural cell types. Additionally, these cells triggered the secretion of neurotrophic growth factors that helped rebuild wounded neurons.<br /><br />Importantly, Limoli and his colleagues found that engrafted cells protected the host neurons, thereby preventing the loss or promoting the repair of damaged neurons and their finer structural elements, referred to as dendritic spines.<br /><br />"This research suggests that stem cell therapies may one day be implemented in the clinic to provide relief to patients suffering from cognitive impairments incurred as a result of their cancer treatments," Limoli said. "While much work remains, a clinical trial analyzing the safety of such approaches may be possible within a few years."<br /><br />###<br /><br />Munjal Acharya, Lori-Ann Christie, Vahan Martirosian, Nicole N. Chmielewski, Nevine Hanna, Katherine Tran, Alicia Liao and Vipan Parihar of UCI contributed to the study, which was funded by the National Institutes of Health (grant R01 NS074388581) and supported by UCI's Institute for Clinical &amp; Translational Science. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333300; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 9.21349811553955px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 9.21349811553955px;">doi:&nbsp;</span><span class="slug-doi" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #333300; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 9.21349811553955px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 9.21349811553955px; margin: 0px; outline-style: none; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" title="10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-14-2237">10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-14-2237</span></div>
Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-40692023618257513142015-02-02T06:06:00.000-08:002015-02-02T12:50:38.946-08:00How to Use This Blog<div style="font-family: Georgia,&quot;Times New Roman&quot;,serif; text-align: center;">
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Idelle Davidson </div>
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Welcome. I hope you'll find the articles and stories here valuable. To begin, use the&nbsp;<u style="font-weight: bold;">SEARCH BOX</u>,<b> </b>top right.&nbsp; Type in keywords like,&nbsp;<i>lymphoma</i>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<i>breast cancer </i>or<i> memory </i>or<i>&nbsp;multitasking or </i><i>driving,&nbsp;</i>or<i>&nbsp;word retrieval</i>, or&nbsp;<i>exercise</i>, and see what articles and resources pop up. Also browse the LABELS index (right column, bottom of page) and check out reader favorites.<br />
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Here are some recommendations:</div>
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<b>1) How Chemotherapy Changes the Way You Think</b></div>
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There you'll find my four-part series on how treatment affects your mind, including an <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2010/08/cognitive-domains-of-chemo-brain-part-1.html">introduction</a> and a discussion of issues with <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2010/08/part-ii-cognitive-domains-of-chemo.html">executive functioning</a> (planning ahead, multitasking, solving problems, etc.),&nbsp;<a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2010/08/information-processing-how-chemotherapy.html">information processing</a> and <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2010/09/word-retrieval-how-chemotherapy-changes.html">word retrieval</a>.<br />
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Then look at: <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2012/09/navigating-through-chemo-brain.html" target="_blank">Navigating Through Chemo Brain</a> for tips on breaking through the fog.</div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2) Research</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You may be surprised to learn that scientists are finally beginning to connect the dots between chemotherapy and cognitive dysfunction.&nbsp; Read about advances at the University of<br />
Rochester, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Stanford, Indiana University and other institutions.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3) Ask the Experts</span></b></div>
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Doctors and others answer readers' questions about brain fog.</div>
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<b>4) New York Times Consults Blog With Dr. Silverman</b></div>
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Dan Silverman responded to readers' questions in the New York Times about "chemo brain.'&nbsp; <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/search/label/New%20York%20Times%20Consults%20Blog%20With%20Dr.%20Silverman">Read a sampling of the questions and answers </a>here or click on the link to the actual New York Times blog.</div>
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<b>5) Is "Chemo Brain" A Disability Under the Americans With Disabilities Act?</b></div>
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Read my <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2010/10/is-chemo-brain-disability-under.html">Q &amp; A with attorney Joanna Morales</a> of the Cancer Legal Resource Center and learn how you can protect yourself in the workplace.</div>
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<b>6) Stories</b></div>
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For those of us who have traveled through cancer or are experiencing it now, how does sharing our stories help us find our way? &nbsp;The answer lies in connection, in community.</div>
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My favorite story is from Lori. Find it in the LABELS index under <i>"<a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/search/label/I%20Appreciate%20Your%20Book%20%5BFrom%20Lori%5D">I Appreciate Your Book</a>."</i> The first line of her note to us is what made the two years it took to write our book all worth it.&nbsp; She begins: "I would like to tell you how much I appreciate your book - I bought it yesterday, read it all night, with a highlighter, crying...."<br />
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If you read all the stories submitted to this blog, you'll come away with a pretty good idea of the toll "chemo brain" takes on cancer survivors and their families.&nbsp; <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2009/11/when-spouses-chemo-brain-is-no-longer.html">Michelle</a> writes about trying to be loving and patient with her husband who went through chemo for Hodgkin's and is now chronically forgetful.&nbsp; <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2010/01/breast-cancer-at-38-with-fog-depression.html">Susan M</a>. tells us about her breast cancer diagnosis at age 38 and how she is still dealing with fog and depression.&nbsp; <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2010/08/moment-of-intense-embarrassmentcould-it.html">Lois</a> wonders if she has Alzheimer's.&nbsp; <a href="http://yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2010/03/what-helped-this-cll-survivor-from.html">Bruce Lantry</a> was treated for leukemia.&nbsp; He has found ways to cope with his loss of mental focus.<br />
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These stories are here to validate that each of us matters.<br />
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And finally, to really learn about "chemo brain," to understand what causes it and what you can do about it,&nbsp; get a copy of our book: "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Your-Brain-After-Chemo-Practical/dp/0738213918/ref=tmm_pap_title_0">Your Brain After Chemo: A Practical Guide to Lifting the Fog and Getting Back Your Focus</a>" by Dan Silverman, MD, PhD and Idelle Davidson.&nbsp; See the reviews on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Your-Brain-After-Chemo-Practical/dp/0738213918/ref=tmm_pap_title_0">Amazon</a>.</div>
Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-37333978021266786362015-01-12T23:24:00.000-08:002015-02-02T12:51:47.410-08:00"Brain Freeze," A Poem by Susan Rubin<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I'd like you to know about my friend, Susan. She's smart and funny and one of my heroes. Susan does not let go. She pushes and prods the experts until they recognize her chemo-related disabilities and provide resources for her and others. &nbsp;She sends them copies of our book so they'll see the research and understand that chemo brain is real.&nbsp;</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">But Susan continues to struggle. &nbsp;Here's her beautiful poem...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Brain Freeze</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>By Susan Rubin</i></span></div>
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<i>Long Island, NY</i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It is a homonym&nbsp;</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">You know&nbsp;</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">But unexpected&nbsp;</span></div>
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The sensual taste&nbsp;</div>
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Of the ice cream&nbsp;</div>
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And the awakening of the freeze</div>
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Hands caressing the&nbsp;</div>
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Invasion of the forehead&nbsp;</div>
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That subsides so&nbsp;</div>
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Quickly</div>
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Brain freeze&nbsp;</div>
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It is a homonym you know&nbsp;</div>
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The traveling vemon&nbsp;</div>
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The red toxicity&nbsp;</div>
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Hammering the brain&nbsp;</div>
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Exploding the fronal lobes&nbsp;</div>
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Frozen&nbsp;</div>
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Forever</div>
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I tentatively refused&nbsp;</div>
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The potent&nbsp;</div>
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That would increase my odds&nbsp;</div>
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He called me&nbsp;</div>
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The oncologist&nbsp;</div>
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“If it was my wife”&nbsp;</div>
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Well there you go&nbsp;</div>
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Go no further</div>
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I opted for&nbsp;</div>
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The odds for survival&nbsp;</div>
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He did not tell me&nbsp;</div>
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Nobody did&nbsp;</div>
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Fighting the odds&nbsp;</div>
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By a few percentage&nbsp;</div>
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Was in leiu of a&nbsp;</div>
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Clouded mind</div>
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The red poured in&nbsp;</div>
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The brain cells flowed out&nbsp;</div>
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In a free flow&nbsp;</div>
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Attacking the road map&nbsp;</div>
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Of my survival&nbsp;</div>
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My memory&nbsp;</div>
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My Attention&nbsp;</div>
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My Problem solving&nbsp;</div>
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My recall&nbsp;</div>
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My ease&nbsp;</div>
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The brutally of&nbsp;</div>
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A red IV</div>
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Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-28639461636563773962015-01-07T20:21:00.000-08:002015-01-12T22:08:02.155-08:00For a Sharper Memory, Play Like a Kid!<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/e_YdPNgByOE" width="480"></iframe><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">This video about Stephen Jepson will inspire you to change your life. You probably have many of these items around the house already. I am a believer!</span>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-36396150884217255262014-12-04T13:27:00.000-08:002014-12-05T20:38:27.489-08:00Is "Chemo Brain" a Disability Under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)?<div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;">
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<i>People often report debilitating cognitive issues following treatment for cancer.&nbsp; I wondered, are there legal protections available to them if they can no longer work?</i></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_UDj3s63LxKU/TKe-FRwTLuI/AAAAAAAAALo/CVLNyTbbrfk/s1600/JLM+-+Headshot+2.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_UDj3s63LxKU/TKe-FRwTLuI/AAAAAAAAALo/CVLNyTbbrfk/s200/JLM+-+Headshot+2.jpg" height="200" width="194" /></a><i>To find out, I spoke with Joanna Morales, an attorney and the former director of the Cancer Legal Resource Center (CLRC), a national, joint program of the <a href="https://www.disabilityrightslegalcenter.org/">Disability Rights Legal Center</a> and <a href="http://www.lls.edu/">Loyola Law School Los Angeles</a>.</i><br />
<i> The CLRC provides free information and resources on cancer-related legal issues to cancer survivors, caregivers, health care professionals, employers, and others coping with cancer.&nbsp; I hope you find the information helpful.&nbsp; -- Originally published in 2010 but worth repeating.</i><br />
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<b>ID) What is the legal standard to qualify for a disability?</b><br />
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JM) To have a disability under the <a href="http://www.ada.gov/pubs/adastatute08.htm#12102">ADA's definition of disability</a>, you have to have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits major life activities, have a history of an impairment, or be regarded as having an impairment.<br />
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Major life activities have traditionally been things like walking, talking, eating, breathing and working. But when the ADA amendments passed in 2008, they specifically delineated some additional major life activities that made it easier for someone with cancer to actually use the ADA's protections.<br />
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And those activities include sleeping, concentrating, thinking, communicating and operation of major bodily functions.<br />
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So, particularly the concentrating and thinking activities really speak to the side effects from treatment that we often call, "chemo brain."<br />
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This really makes it much easier to argue that the effects of chemo brain are substantially limiting major life activities.&nbsp; That by itself has made it easier for people with cancer to use the ADA's protections.<br />
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Now what that means is you really get two types of protections in the employment arena.&nbsp; One is that you're protected against discrimination.&nbsp; And two is that you get access to reasonable accommodations.&nbsp; <br />
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<b>ID) What would those accommodations be?</b><br />
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JM) Reasonable accommodations are things that could accommodate you in the workplace if you are experiencing chemo brain.&nbsp; That might mean having a note taker in a meeting or maybe your employer would buy you a tape recorder so that you can tape record meetings to help you remember what was agreed upon in that meeting.<br />
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That might also mean help with organization of your workspace or providing things that are going to make the concentrating piece, or sometimes the memory piece, easier for you in the work environment.&nbsp; So maybe your employer might provide access to a hand-held electronic device such as a PDA (personal digital assistant) so that you can take notes and have access to your contacts, calendar, and to-do list all in the same place.<br />
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So there are lots of pretty simple things that can be reasonable accommodations and can ease your experience with chemo brain and are relatively easy for an employer to provide.<br />
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<b>ID) But "chemo brain" may not be severe in every case.</b><br />
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JM) That's correct.&nbsp; We can never say across the board that everyone who experiences chemo brain has a disability, or even that everyone who has cancer has a disability.&nbsp; That analysis is always done on a case-by-case basis.&nbsp; It's how your particular diagnosis is affecting your particular major life activities and whether or not that effect is substantial.<br />
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<b>ID) Who makes that evaluation?</b><br />
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JM) Eventually if it were to go to that point, it would be a court. So you would hope that you wouldn't have to go to court to make the argument that you do have a qualifying disability.&nbsp; <br />
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But initially if you're having that conversation with your employer, your employer is going to get that information from your health care team.&nbsp; All you may need is just a letter from a health care professional that speaks to your particular medical condition and your ability to function in the context of major life activities.<br />
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<b>ID) So the employee makes a request for an accommodation.&nbsp; What happens next?</b><br />
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&nbsp;JM) Once a request for an accommodation is made, the employer and employee are supposed to engage in what is called the "interactive process," so that there is a discussion about the accommodations that are being requested and if there are perhaps alternative accommodations that would work better.&nbsp; It's supposed to be a back-and-forth dialogue.&nbsp; But ultimately the employee is supposed to get an accommodation.<br />
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Now if along the way the employee doesn't feel as if he's getting heard, there are different options.&nbsp; One is mediating with the employer, filing a complaint with the state fair employment agency or the federal <a href="http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/howtofil.html">Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)</a> or pursuing legal representation.&nbsp; That can be something as simple as a lawyer writing a letter on behalf of the employee, reminding the employer of their obligations under the law and what the employee is asking for, or it can be much more aggressive depending on the circumstances.<br />
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<b>ID) What if you just can't work anymore even with accommodations?&nbsp; </b><br />
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JM) Then disability benefits are a pretty good option if you qualify for them.&nbsp; There are lots of different types of disability benefits.&nbsp; There are some states that have state disability insurance programs.&nbsp; There are employers who offer short and long-term disability insurance plans through your work.&nbsp; You can also buy your own private short or long-term disability insurance plan.&nbsp; There are also the two federal long-term disability insurance plans available through the Social Security Administration: <a href="http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10029.html">Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)</a>, and <a href="http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/11000.html">Supplemental Security Income (SSI)</a>. <br />
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<b>ID) What are the qualifications for each one?</b><br />
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The qualifications for each are very different. In California, for example, the <a href="http://www.edd.ca.gov/Disability/DI_Eligibility.htm">California State Disability Insurance (SDI)</a> plan has the lowest standard of disability.&nbsp; You just have to have a medical condition that is keeping you out of work at least eight days.&nbsp; That's probably the simplest definition of disability.<br />
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For SSI and SSDI, you must have a disability that's expected to last longer than a year and is keeping you from substantial gainful activity.&nbsp; <br />
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And then for private plans, whether they are something you purchase yourself, or are purchased through an employer, the contract is going to define disability and the terms of the policy.<br />
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<b>ID) What are the specific disability benefits for each program?</b><br />
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It depends on the program.&nbsp; In California, SDI will pay approximately 55% of your income while you were working.&nbsp; It's a formula.&nbsp; They look back over a certain number of quarters of what you were making and then it's 55% of that amount.<br />
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Then there are the two federal long-term programs.&nbsp; SSI is a flat monthly rate and SSDI pays benefits based on what you have paid into the Social Security system over your work history.&nbsp; <br />
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<b>ID) What if you don't work?&nbsp; Perhaps you're retired or you're a stay-at-home parent where functioning at home is difficult.&nbsp; What then?</b><br />
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JM) If you aren't working, but are in a situation where you are experiencing chemo brain and maybe other long-term side effects from treatment such as fatigue or depression you may qualify for other assistance programs.&nbsp; Getting assistance around the house, whether it be paying bills or daily chores, can bring up a number of different areas of the law.&nbsp; So if it's financial management, perhaps you would want to consider a power of attorney for financial affairs.&nbsp; If it's to keep track of the day-to-day things, you may be able to qualify for in-home support services, depending on your income and whether you qualify for that program.<br />
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<b>ID) Where does that assistance come from?</b><br />
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In-Home Support Services (IHSS) is a program related to Medicaid (Medi-Cal in California) that is available in some states (contact the <a href="https://www.disabilityrightslegalcenter.org/about/cancerlegalresource.cfm">Cancer Legal Resource Center</a> for state information).&nbsp; And it's specifically available to assist people who would prefer to stay in their own home, rather than be forced into moving to an institutional environment like a nursing home.&nbsp; And they can have someone come into their home and help them.<br />
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IHSS will do an assessment to see what your capacity is and what you need help with and how many hours per week you require assistance, then they come up with a formula and they will pay for part or all of that care.&nbsp; But you do need to have an income level that qualifies you for the Medicaid program in your state. <br />
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<i>To learn more about "Your Brain After Chemo: A Practical Guide to Lifting the Fog and Getting Back Your Focus" by Dan Silverman, MD, PhD. and Idelle Davidson, visit <a href="http://www.yourbrainafterchemo.com/">www.YourBrainAfterChemo.com</a> or find the book on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Your-Brain-after-Chemo-Practical/dp/0738212598">Amazon</a>.&nbsp;</i><br />
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<i>For permission to reprint this article, please send an email to IdelleDavidson@gmail.com. </i> <br />
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Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-69576751352734165492014-11-19T21:32:00.000-08:002014-11-23T17:55:03.340-08:00Erdheim-Chester Histiocytosis: An Orphan Disease With a Champion<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/the-ultra-rare-erdheim-chester-disease-turning-grief-into-a-campaign-for-a-cure/2014/11/14/b3c75d3c-5eb5-11e4-91f7-5d89b5e8c251_story.html" target="_blank">Published 11/18/2014 in the Washington Post&nbsp;</a></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">By Idelle Davidson</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It wasn’t until she read her husband’s autopsy report that Kathy Brewer learned his diagnosis — a disease so rare that not one doctor had figured it out. His illness began in 1998, the year Kathy, then 38, and, Gary Brewer, then 58, got married. But Gary was busy with his job as a school superintendent in DeRidder, La., and paid little attention to his backaches and knee pain, chalking them up to overexercising. Eventually, though, those first symptoms led to constant fatigue and nausea, facial numbness, congestive heart disease and kidney failure. Three years after receiving a kidney transplant, Gary couldn’t walk or swallow. Several of his organs shut down, and he died in 2007.<br /><br />The cause was Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD), one of 7,000 diseases tracked by the nonprofit <a href="https://www.rarediseases.org/">National Organization for Rare Disorders</a>. The National Institutes of Health and the Food and Drug Administration call such ailments “orphan” diseases because they each affect fewer than 200,000 people in the United States.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/the-ultra-rare-erdheim-chester-disease-turning-grief-into-a-campaign-for-a-cure/2014/11/14/b3c75d3c-5eb5-11e4-91f7-5d89b5e8c251_story.html" target="_blank">Jump to the Washington Post.</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;</span></i></div>
Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-3451770762120723432014-11-10T23:00:00.004-08:002014-11-23T17:56:54.825-08:00Can Sea Snails Fix Chemo Brain?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rcn6ZWQaQGE/VGGsRAFgRiI/AAAAAAAAAXY/F8ENQmBcIls/s1600/aplysia.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rcn6ZWQaQGE/VGGsRAFgRiI/AAAAAAAAAXY/F8ENQmBcIls/s1600/aplysia.jpg" height="186" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Aplysia Californica</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It appears we have a few things in common with sea snails. In fact, neurobiolgists have long recognized the scientific possibilities of their nervous systems, using them in studies of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. They are reflexive creatures, containing only about 20,000 neurons compared to the 100 billion in the typical adult brain. But the neurons are large and relay information much the same way as in humans. That simplicity helps scientists isolate how they—and we—learn.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">And now, according to neuroscientist <a href="http://nba.uth.tmc.edu/resources/faculty/members/byrne.htm" target="_blank">John Byrne, PhD</a>. and his team at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston, these animals may hold the key to preventing chemo brain. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As reported in the <a href="http://www.jneurosci.org/content/34/40/13289.short?sid=84cdee01-5a9f-4696-bed4-9c5bc6df1a13" target="_blank">Journal of Neuroscience</a>, the scientists found that the cancer drug, doxorubicin, blocked a pathway responsible for memory in a sea snail. But then</span><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">—</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">and this is the exciting part</span><span style="font-family: &quot;Calibri&quot;,sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: &quot;Times New Roman&quot;; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">—</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">they were able to reopen the pathway with an experimental drug.<br /><br />Unfortunately, according to the university’s <a href="https://www.uth.edu/media/story.htm?id=44a51a8a-c20d-4ca6-afb8-86b9a2552fba" target="_blank">press release</a>, the drug would not be appropriate for humans.<br /><br />I was curious to learn more and so I wrote to Dr. Byrne. I wanted to know why the drug would not be appropriate and what agents might eventually work in humans.<br /><br />He was kind enough to email this response:<br /><br /><i>"I think that we made an important step in understanding cognitive deficits associated with chemotherapy, but much needs to be done before this knowledge can be applied to patients. For example, we need to know that the p38 MAPK pathway is also involved in cognitive deficits in humans and then identify an effective inhibitor of that pathway (the one we used SB203580 is not FDA approved). Importantly, any inhibitor must be specific for the cognitive deficits and not affect the ability of the cancer drug to target and destroy cancer cells."</i><br /><br />Okay, sounds interesting. Here's hoping advances move faster than at a snail’s pace. -- ID</span>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-63478325186736112602014-06-05T10:08:00.000-07:002014-08-25T14:37:02.999-07:00Wanted: Chemo Brain Rehab Programs - An Open Letter to Cancer Centers<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As a science writer who went through cancer and post-treatment fog and then wrote a book about the “chemo brain” phenomenon, I can tell you there is enormous frustration in the cancer community over the lack of systems to help with quality of life.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> Long after hair grows back, long after nausea and neuropathy are things of the past, many still grapple with memory, concentration, and word retrieval problems, and the inability to multitask. In some cases, these deficits linger not for months, but for years.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I know this because people tell me. &nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Their words are poignant and heartbreaking.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">They are thankful to be alive but struggle with day-to-day functioning and quick thinking. Jobs and livelihoods are at stake. There is discord at home because simple tasks go unfinished. Their families grow resentful.&nbsp;</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />All hope I’ll have answers. But I don’t. No one really does. The best I can do is point them to the research and possible ways to cope culled from different disciplines.<br /><br />I am aware of the scientific advances being made on our behalf and I am grateful. In 2007, when I first started reporting on chemo brain, many doctors considered the idea of cancer-related or cancer-treatment-related cognitive impairment a figment of the imagination, discounting patient reports of memory problems. Without medical support, patients literally thought they were going out of their minds.<br /><br />Now that the literature is finally validating patient complaints, doctors are more sympathetic (although many still are concerned more with cure rates than quality of life). And while that may be comforting to some, what we need now is not the psycho-babble talk that patients should become accustomed to a “new normal” (an understandable but insulting term) but real concrete help to recapture our normal selves as we were pre-diagnosis.<br /><br />That’s why we need intervention programs. Until the scientific story changes, until targeted therapies cure cancer while leaving our minds intact, cognitive rehabilitation can provide tools to help compensate for some of these deficits. <br /><br /><i><b>In the next few weeks I will be posting information about programs and workshops. Is there one at your cancer treatment center? If so, let me know and I will add it to the list.</b></i></span>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-12013992876259428332014-06-01T16:59:00.000-07:002014-06-06T19:34:54.022-07:00The Poetry of Chemo Brain<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I would like to congratulate <b>Elise Partridge</b> whose poem, “Chemo Side Effects: Memory,” was just posted on former U.S. Poet Laureate <a href="http://robertpinsky.wordpress.com/2014/05/28/the-art-of-noticing/">Robert Pinsky’s Poetry Forum</a> website. </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> The work is from her book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Chameleon-Hours-Phoenix-Poets-Partridge/dp/0226647927/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1401666343&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=Elise+partridge" target="_blank">Chameleon Hours</a>, and deals with the difficulty of word retrieval after cancer treatment. Ironically, considering the subject matter, Elise finds the words to beautifully express what so many of us have gone through.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Here’s what Robert Pinsky says on his <a href="http://robertpinsky.wordpress.com/2014/05/28/the-art-of-noticing/" target="_blank">site</a> about her poem:<br /><i><br />“The contemporary poet Elise Partridge, in her book Chameleon Hours, has some observant poems about cancer treatment. I like the directness, clarity and understatement of these poems. Partridge scrupulously avoids playing for sympathy; but beyond that, in “Chemo Side Effects: Memory” she convinces me that her attention to memory loss is absorbing, rich in detail: a little like the fascination a birder or a nature poet communicates in rich textures of behavior.”</i><br /><br />Elise has very kindly granted me permission to re-post her poem here. I hope you will find it meaningful. Thanks so much, Elise!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b>Chemo Side Effects: Memory&nbsp;</b></span></div>
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by Elise Partridge</div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Where is the word I want?<br /><br />Groping<br />in the thicket,<br />about to pinch the<br />dangling<br />berry, my fingerpads<br />close on<br />air.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I can hear it</span></div>
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scrabbling like a squirrel</div>
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on the oak’s far side.</div>
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Word, please send over this black stretch of ocean</div>
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your singular flare,</div>
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blaze</div>
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your topaz in the mind’s blank.</div>
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I could always pull the gift</div>
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from the lucky-dip barrel,</div>
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scoop the right jewel</div>
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from my dragon’s trove….</div>
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Now I flail,</div>
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the wrong item creaks up</div>
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on the mental dumbwaiter.</div>
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No use --</div>
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it’s turning</div>
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out of sight,</div>
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a bicycle down a</div>
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Venetian alley --</div>
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I clatter after, only to find</div>
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gondolas bobbing in sunny silence,</div>
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a pigeon mumbling something</div>
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I just can’t catch.</div>
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Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-61868858828560567482013-05-20T12:17:00.000-07:002013-05-30T22:52:36.216-07:00Memory Problems After Cancer? Computer Games May Help<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">If you've been through cancer treatment and you are struggling with memory, concentration, multitasking and/or word retrieval issues, you may be hoping for that golden portal, that doorway back to your pre-cancer self.&nbsp;</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">If only, if only...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">One area researchers are investigating to whisk you there is cognitive (re)training with specially designed software. How great would it be if rehabilitation were just a handful of hours and some computer mouse clicks away? Could it possibly be so easy as playing timed word games, puzzles, and a variation on Whac-A-Mole?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">That's the hope. &nbsp;In recent years a few studies have looked into it. &nbsp;Two, using software developed by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.positscience.com/"><b>Posit Science</b></a> and<a href="http://www.lumosity.com/"> <b>Lumos Labs</b></a><b> </b>(Lumosity), have focused on chemo brain in people who have had breast cancer. Other studies have looked at cognitive issues more broadly. &nbsp;Software by&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.cogmed.com/published-research" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Cogmed</b> </a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">has has been used to study brain injuries, memory issues in children with cancer, concentration issues related to ADHD, and more. &nbsp;Programs by&nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.dakim.com/why-it-works/clinical-trials/" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Dakim</b></a>&nbsp;have<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">&nbsp;centered on age-related memory decline. &nbsp;</span><a href="http://www.cognifitpersonalcoach.com/science/research" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Cognifit</b></a>&nbsp;software has supported memory research<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">&nbsp;in students with dyslexia and in patients with multiple sclerosis, and in age-related decline.&nbsp;</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Have I mentioned them all? &nbsp;Are there more science-based programs out there? Let me know if I've missed any.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">In the meantime, here's a summary of the Posit Science and Lumos Labs studies.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /><b><a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22918524">The Posit Science Study</a> </b><br /><br />Between 2009 and 2011, 82 women participated in a study that compared results of classroom memory exercises with computer software exercises. The results were published last October in the journal <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22918524" target="_blank">Breast Cancer Research and Treatment</a> (lead author: Diane Von Ah, PhD, RN of Indiana University). Researchers randomly assigned the women to one of three groups: 1) classroom-type instruction on how to remember lists of words, sequences and text; or 2) speed of information processing training (how quickly you think things through) with Posit Science software (InSight program); or 3) a wait-list control group. &nbsp;All the women had gone through surgery and chemotherapy and on average had completed treatment 5 1/2 years earlier.<br /><br />Those in the training groups participated in ten one-hour training sessions over a period of 6 to 8 weeks. <br /><br />Both training groups improved in processing speed and verbal memory based on neuropsychological assessments and patient questionnaires but according to Dr. Von Ah as quoted in <a href="http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/772538">Medscape</a>, the software group outcome “...may have ‘broader’ benefits.” <br /><br /><a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23647804"><b>The Lumos Labs (Lumosity) Study</b></a> <br /><br />Forty-one women (21 active and 20 wait listed as the control group) participated. Each had undergone surgery and chemotherapy (may also have had radiation and/or hormonal therapies) to treat breast cancer. On average, they completed treatment 6 years prior. Results appeared just this week in the journal <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23647804" target="_blank">Clinical Breast Cancer </a>(lead author: Shelli Kesler, PhD, director of the Neuropsychology and Neuroimaging Lab, Stanford University). <br /><br />The researchers designed this <a href="http://blog.lumosity.com/kesler2013/">particular program</a> to test for improvement in executive functioning, a term referring to working memory, decision making, multitasking, planning and attention. The women trained using the software on their home computers over the course of 12 weeks. Exercises included navigating through a rotating maze, recalling the location of coins and other memory/puzzle games. <br /><br />At the end of that time (researchers administered standardized cognitive tests prior to beginning the program and then again after completing it), the women who played the computer games showed significant improvements compared to the control group in processing speed, word finding, and verbal memory. <br /><br />Both studies though lacked long-term follow up, so we don't know if the benefits held over time. &nbsp;Also, it’s not clear whether the most important question of all has been answered: Can successful cognitive training transfer to real world responsibilities or do you just get better at the games themselves? At least in the Kesler study, the participants reported they could function better in how they planned and accomplished goals and kept track of tasks.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />Drs. Kesler and Von Ah say that more research is needed but it does appear from&nbsp;<a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2760033/" target="_blank">other studies</a>, that computer-based cognitive training can slow deterioration in cases of Alzheimer's disease and mild cognitive impairment.<br /><br /><i>Have you used any of these programs? &nbsp;If so, which ones? &nbsp;Did they help? I’d really like to know. I’ll bet others would too. </i><br /><br /> </span></div>
Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-45295861192572268702013-05-14T14:25:00.001-07:002013-05-20T13:01:49.653-07:007-Year Mesothelioma Cancer Survivor Tells Her Story (and It's Not About Chemo Brain)<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><i>I think I've done a pretty good job (if I do say so myself) of restricting my blog specifically to the topic of chemo brain. I'm making an exception though for Heather Von St. James who wants to increase awareness of <a href="http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/mesothelioma.html">mesothelioma</a>, the malignant cancer that is linked to inhaling asbestos particles. Her <a href="http://www.mesothelioma.com/heather">video</a> is lovely and inspiring. I hope you'll watch it. See her note, below.</i></span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">My name is Heather and I am a 44-year-old survivor of mesothelioma – a very rare cancer that kills most people within 2 years. After intense treatment and recovery, I’m still here 7 years later and cancer free. My journey was a terrifying one and I am hoping to turn my pain into purpose and become someone that other people can look to for guidance, inspiration, and hope in situations like my own. My husband and I recently participated in a short video about my journey with cancer and I contacted you because I really feel that your blog would be an excellent place to share. I’m hoping to use this video and my story as a tool to raise awareness of this horrible cancer that is such a deadly killer (and sadly, 100% preventable), as well as spread a message of hope.&nbsp;</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It can be found at </span><a href="http://www.mesothelioma.com/heather/" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">www.mesothelioma.com/heather/</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /><br />Heather</span>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-26105144120229309972013-04-22T14:19:00.000-07:002014-08-25T14:38:29.430-07:00Neuropsych Testing Can Confirm Chemo Brain, Say UCLA Researchers<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Historically, a frustration among researchers has been that neuropsychological testing is not sensitive enough to confirm a patient’s complaints of memory issues after chemotherapy.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> Imagine then how patients feel. They may have already submitted to batteries of testing. And that testing may not have matched self-reports of memory loss, or struggles attending to the tasks of everyday life, or issues with word retrieval.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Brain scans, on the other hand, can successfully detect cognitive impairment after treatment. My co-author, Dan Silverman, and his UCLA team, were among the first scientists to use PET scans to link impaired brain function with chemotherapy and hormonal therapies. Those results were </span><a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17009108" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">published</a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> back in 2006. Other researchers have noted changes in brain structure after chemotherapy through studies with MRI.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /><br /> But not everyone has access to a brain scan or cares to submit to one. A sit-down interview with a neuropsychologist and a fill-in-the-dots paper-and-pencil test is far more palatable to many patients. <br /><br />In this current UCLA study, published this week in the <a href="http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2013/04/12/jnci.djt073.abstract?sid=b826ba2c-2933-4ef5-a4e0-47cd77402e6e">Journal of the National Cancer Institute</a>, researchers investigated whether neuropsychological testing would validate a patient’s report of problems with thinking and memory in a consistent way. Patti Ganz, MD, headed the study and Dan Silverman is a co-author.<br /><br />To answer the question, the team enrolled 189 newly diagnosed breast cancer patients (stages 0, 1, 2, or 3A) in the study. Timing was important. As other research has shown a link between anti-estrogen drugs (tamoxifen, aromatase inhibitors) and memory deficits, Ganz and colleagues wanted to make sure the women had completed primary cancer treatment but had not yet begun endocrine or hormonal therapy. Women with serious anxiety and depression were excluded from the study as these symptoms also can cloud memory.<br /><br />Participants completed a questionnaire asking about their cognitive symptoms and went through a battery of neuropsychological tests. When compared, the researchers found a direct correlation between a high level of patient complaints and low test scores. Regarding memory, 23% of patients had higher complaints than those in a control group and 19% reported higher complaints about executive functioning (problem solving, reasoning, etc.). Researchers also found a correlation between low test scores, combined chemotherapy and radiation treatments, and symptoms of depression.<br /><br />This study is by no means the first to find a scientific basis for a patient’s cognitive complaints. In fact, the literature on this dates back to the 1990s. Other scientists as well have looked at patient self-reports and whether those reports mesh with quantifiable chemo brain. The UCLA study builds on that work.<br /><br />According to Dr. Ganz, “In the past, many researchers said that we can’t rely on patients’ self-reported complaints or that they are just depressed because previous studies could not find this association between neuropsychological testing and cognitive complaints. In this study, we were able to look at specific components of the cognitive complaints and found they were associated with relevant neuropsychological function test abnormalities."<br /><br />In other words, the UCLA study further refines the literature backing us up as patients, confirming that as a group, we are not imagining our symptoms. And that’s a good thing, but at some point we need to stop proving the obvious. This phenomenon we call, “chemo brain,” is already known and accepted by the scientific community. <br /><br />As Christina A. Meyers, Ph.D., Chief of Neuropsychology (retired) at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center says in her <a href="http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2013/04/12/jnci.djt091.extract">accompanying editorial</a>, it’s time to move forward. Let's get to the interventions.</span>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-60614352644100754462013-04-17T10:26:00.000-07:002013-04-22T23:47:27.214-07:00Chemo Brain: A Guide for Caregivers<i><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Sara Barton wrote this beautiful piece for her blog, <a href="http://www.practicalcaregiver.org/">"The Practical Caregiver -- Cancer."</a>&nbsp;She has graciously allowed me to re-post it here. Not only does Sara write about her experiences as a caregiver but she provides tips and guides for others. See her blog at <a href="http://www.practicalcaregiver.org/">http://www.practicalcaregiver.org</a>. -- ID</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">By Sara M. Barton</span></div>
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<br /><b>Getting Past Chemo Brain</b><br />I'm a big believer that family caregivers can make a difference for cancer patients when we focus on overcoming the dreaded "chemo brain" by helping our loved ones in gentle, respectful ways.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><b style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">After Chemo</b><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br />I trained as a teacher, so I understand that not all students process information in the same way. I often saw students struggle to learn what came easily to other classmates and peers. It's part of the reason why I always made an effort to gear my approach to the specific student. By understanding how a student perceived information, I was better able to figure out ways to connect that student to the information I wanted to impart.<br /><br /><b>Devise Strategies</b><br />Why does that matter? My mother had chemo brain after being treated for lung cancer. Oddly enough, she also had ADD. It runs in my family, and although I don't have it, I made an effort to understand what it is and how to help someone overcome it. Patterning the brain to overcome deficits can help build connectors and connections, can bypass what isn't working. The human brain is an amazing thing, especially when you look for ways to overcome the obstacles. In the years of being a family caregiver, I had devised strategies to help my mother cope with all the simple things that she couldn't remember due to the ADD. But with chemo brain? Wow. She was devastated. Why?<br /><br />She had an amazing mind when it came to language skills. Verbal and expressive, she might not have been able to focus on concrete issues, but she had been a writer for decades, a voracious reader, and a talented Scrabble player, who didn't like shortcuts or cheating. With chemotherapy, all that seemed to fly out the window.<br /><br /><b>Encourage Options</b><br />Even as those cognitive issues began to rear their ugly heads, I was looking for ways to reduce the emotional blows she endured because of the chemotherapy. We moved from competitive Scrabble to cooperative Scrabble. I refused to compete with her, insisting that it was more important for her to get the words than it was to get the points. I would give her little prompts, trying hard to encourage her to push herself a little more to come up with possible solutions. I even nudged her to think of more than one solution. I wanted her to have options that would allow her to realize, to recognize, that there were points according to the value of the letter tiles.<br /><br />In other words, I wanted her to have the chance to relearn how to play the game, and in doing so, I wanted to return to her some of the verbal skills she lost after chemotherapy. Did I succeed?<br /><br />I'd like to tell you that my mother went back to being her old self eventually, but that's not quite true. She never did seem to fully recover her ability to read for any length of time. The joy of reading slowly slipped away from her. Part of that could have been due to the progression of her cancer.<br /><br /><b>Rebuild Slowly</b><br />But I can tell you that those Scrabble sessions actually made a difference. What is my proof? Time and time again we played the game, on a regular basis, a regular schedule. Slowly, but surely, my mother began to recognize the value of the letters and to recall the potential words. It took hours of sitting and staring at the board. I believe that's part of the recovery process. The human brain needs to see, to rebuild the connections in the brain, or even to bypass the old connectors for new ones.<br /><br />Would that same type of brain patterning have helped her with her reading skills? I can only wonder. But I can tell you that she was pleased as punch the first time she found herself a 50-pointer on that Scrabble board, without any prompting from me. It was her success, her win, her climb up the mountain, back to what she was before chemo brain challenged her life.<br /><br />If you're a family caregiver for a cancer patient challenged by chemo brain, consider finding gentle, respectful ways to encourage your loved one to "relearn" what once came easy. Focus on the fact that chemo brain is a very real side effect from many types of chemotherapy drugs. Expect that there will be times you might have to prompt your loved one to remember. Don't nag. Don't take over your loved one's mental life. Think of yourself as a train conductor. You want your loved one to get from point A to point B. Call out the stations as they pass by. Remind your loved one what he or she is seeing and where he or she is seeing it. Give a heads up at each juncture. When you do this, you are assisting your loved one to reconnect, to stay in the game of life, to regain what was lost. <br /><br /><b>Don't Judge</b><br />Always remind yourself that a cancer survivor with chemo brain is not a child. Never speak down to your loved one. Never say things like, "Listen this time!" or "You have a mind like a sieve! Why can't you remember this stuff?" Think of chemo brain this way. Your loved one's brain is like a castle, filled with rooms. The chemotherapy has gone through that wonderful palace and not only shut off the lights, but locked the doors. Recovering from chemo brain requires that each door is not only unlocked, but the light switches have to be turned back on. <br /><br />That takes time and effort. Some parts of the brain may be less affected by the chemotherapy than others. Take a mental inventory and build on it. What is your loved one still good at? What can he or she still do without as much prompting? When you identify those skills, work with them. They will help your loved one recover more quickly, because everyone needs to experience success on a regular basis. It's what encourages us to take challenges that we believe we can tackle effectively. We are drawn to light and repelled by darkness. When you identify things your loved one can still do well, find the associated activities that offer some struggles, and work on those skills. Those are the connectors in the brain that will eventually lead to the darkest regions. If you focus on the darkness, if you only see what the failures are, you will miss the opportunity to light the lights. Strength comes from success, from what is functioning. Weakness comes from darkness, what is failing. Point yourself in the direction of helping your loved one use his or her strengths to adapt to weaknesses.<br /><br /><b>Validate</b><br />Above all, believe in your loved one. Don't assume that every change in mental acuity is permanent. Don't be afraid to put up notes, to put things in writing, to place reminders. There will be times that your loved one may get frustrated or feel "stupid". Make a point of reminding him or her that chemo brain is real and not the result of laziness or disinterest.<br /><br />One thing I did learn from watching my mother struggle with the cancer and the cancer treatment? It's a lot of extra work above and beyond living life. It can be exhausting to juggle the side effects and the emotions of cancer. Cancer caregivers need to understand the wide range of issues. When you educate yourself, you are better able to reach out to your loved one. You don't want to make your loved one dependent on you because of chemo brain. You want to empower him or her. Offering effective prompts and encouraging your loved one to get back to living can actually help overcome many of the temporary effects of the powerful drugs. When you focus on helping your loved one regain those mental skills, that's the best kind of caregiving.<br /><br /><i>[And this as well from Sara:] The Practical Caregiver was created in response to a promise I made my mother. Her greatest fear was that I wasted that decade of my life on her. I'm all about empowering patients and finding ways to enable them to overcome their limitations through the right kind of support. I use my experience and education to help connect the caregiver dots, to improve quality of life for all families experiencing health challenges.</i></span>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-68595505151379821102012-09-20T18:09:00.000-07:002012-11-29T21:33:12.227-08:00Navigating Through 'Chemo Brain'*<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Idelle Davidson</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Does any of this sound familiar? You’re halfway through what will be six rounds of chemotherapy when you notice a dense fog rolling over your brain. You grow forgetful. The responsibility of making even small decisions overwhelms you. You find multitasking impossible; good luck completing any task at all. Driving shatters your nerves; you’re disoriented, no longer sure which direction is home. </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"> You lose your keys, your glasses, your cell phone, and realize with a panic that the kids are waiting for you at school. You haven’t a clue where you parked your car. You leave water running in the sink and food burning on the stove. You struggle to retrieve words (you know it begins with a “ka” or “ch” sound and it’s oh so close, right there on the tip of your tongue). Ditto for numbers. You pick up a book and put it down because after the first paragraph, you have no idea what you just read. You avoid social situations because you can’t follow the thread of a conversation. And you wonder, what is happening to me? <br /><br /> If you can relate, then chances are you’re experiencing what researchers refer to as “cancer or cancer-treatment-related cognitive impairment,” also known as, “chemo brain,” or as I like to say, “Where the hell is my memory?” You’re not alone. In fact, among lymphoma and breast cancer survivors where there’s the most data, up to 80 percent of people who undergo chemotherapy report some amount of cognitive impairment. For some, the condition is fleeting. For others, it may last for years. <br /><br /> Undoubtedly you’re concerned. So talk to your oncologist and gather as much information as you can. In the meantime, although there is no cure or prevention as yet for chemo brain, here are some strategies that may help: <br /><br /> 1) Ask for a referral to a neuropsychologist who should be able to evaluate your language, motor, and sensory and visual-spatial skills as well as how you reason and process information. This is an especially good idea for people who have not yet begun treatment but are worried about the cognitive fallout and want to establish a baseline. Whether you’re newly diagnosed or not, a neuropsychologist can monitor you over time and work with you to strengthen any areas of weakness. <br /><br /> 2) Seek out emotional support. It’s well-established that depression and stress also can cloud memory (neuropsychologists screen for that too), not to mention that they wreck havoc on your sense of well-being. So do what you can to lighten your emotional load, whether that means joining a support group, practicing meditation or yoga (both fabulous stress-reducers) or consulting with your doctor about the pros and cons of antidepressants. <br /><br /> 3) Other prescription drugs may help with focus. Talk to your doctor about Provigil, Ritalin and other stimulant pharmaceuticals. <br /><br /> 4) Exercise your body. Swim, walk, join a gym. Physical exercise increases cerebral blood flow and promotes the growth of brain cells. It is probably the number-one best natural stress reducer as well. <br /><br /> 5) Exercise your mind. Work at reading that book (even if it takes you three times as long as anyone else), learn a dance routine (in small chunks if that's what works), try your newspaper’s daily crossword puzzle, take up piano, look into some of the commercial cognitive rehabilitation games. The “no-pain, no-gain” adage applies to the mind as well. <br /> <br />6) Eat healthfully. Cut out the junk. Focus on lean proteins and a colorful assortment of vegetables (especially dark leafy greens) and fruits that nourish the brain. Avoid saturated fats (cheese, whole milk, lard, butter, fatty animal products) and trans-fats (in some fast foods and baked goods such as pie crusts, donuts, crackers, etc.) that can clog arteries and cause poor blood flow to the brain (there’s a reason trans-fats are banned in a few states). Omega-3 fats are the good guys (wild salmon, fish oil supplements, herring, flaxseeds, chia seeds, walnuts, etc.). Researchers believe they improve mood and protect against inflammation and cognitive decline.&nbsp;</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">7) Laugh. &nbsp;Laugh a lot. &nbsp;Humor really does help bring the world into focus and that's an especially good thing for people with chemo brain.</span></div>
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<i style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">* [Note: A version of my post appears on the&nbsp;<a href="http://navigatingcancersurvivorship.org/about-us/leadership" target="_blank">Navigating Cancer Survivorship</a>&nbsp;blog. NCS is&nbsp;a national nonprofit organization connecting people to cancer survivorship resources.]</i></div>
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Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-67471763705467590572012-08-12T20:43:00.002-07:002012-10-07T16:13:55.464-07:00Second-Hand Smoke and Memory Loss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i>In my July 5th column (<a href="http://www.yourbrainafterchemo.blogspot.com/2012/07/is-nicotine-good-for-chemo-brain.html#more" target="_blank">Is Nicotine Good for Chemo Brain?</a>), I wrote about the nicotine patch. <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22232050" target="_blank">Studies </a>suggest the patch may help with memory loss. </i><br />
<a name='more'></a><i>Even though the science is fascinating, I was curious to make sense of why researchers were investigating nicotine as a memory aid when we also know that smoking causes heart disease and cancer. Certainly there had to be something more pure about the patch, otherwise why deal with the devil?</i><br />
<i>Then I read about two conflicting studies led by <a href="http://www.northumbria.ac.uk/sd/academic/lifesciences/ad/psych/psychstaff/t_heffernan/" target="_blank">Tom Heffernan, PhD </a>at Northumbria University at Newcastle in the UK which showed that cigarettes are detrimental to memory. &nbsp;<a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120306072912.htm" target="_blank">In one</a>, he and colleagues found that people who smoke just on weekends not only damage their memory, but cause as much harm as those who smoke everyday. In <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0924933812742062" target="_blank">the other</a>, they concluded that non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke may suffer impairment in prospective memory (remembering future intentions and activities).<br />
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So nicotine on its own boosts memory but cigarettes, which are made of nicotine, destroy it? &nbsp;Am I the only one here who's confused? &nbsp;It was time to consult the experts. I decided to email Dr. Heffernan and ask for some clarification. With permission, here's his kind response. &nbsp;</i><br />
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<u>Tom Heffernan, PhD</u><br />
Nicotine administration has been found to have mixed effects on cognition, but overall people in the area feel that it can act as a cognitive enhancer – that is it may boost cognition because it stimulates particular neurotransmitter pathways (for example, the cholinergic system is one of these) which regulate signals around the brain for a range of behaviour/cognition (thinking). This has led some to suggest it can be used to stimulate such systems in people who suffer from mild cognitive impairment (although the authors of the study you cite do stress that much larger clinical trials are needed before the efficacy of transdermal (which means administration through the unbroken skin) nicotine administration can be accurately assessed). <br />
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Smoking, on the other hand, not only has nicotine being administered to the smoker, but also has more than 4000 chemicals that have been identified in tobacco smoke, at least 250 of which are known to be harmful and more than 50 of which are known to cause cancer (Source: the World Health Organisation (2009) Report on the global tobacco epidemic). These include: Stearic Acid (Candle wax), Butane (Lighters), Methane (Sewer gas), Arsenic (Poison), Carbon monoxide (Exhaust gas), Methanol (Rocket fuel), Paint, Ammonia (Detergent), Toluene (Industrial solvent), Hexamine (Barbecue starter), Cadmium (Batteries), etc. <br />
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So I would suggest that it may well be the toxic mixture of chemicals in the light cigarette that can damage the person’s cardiovascular system and the brain (and therefore resulting in health and cognitive decline). <br />
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By the way, second-hand smoking (where a non-smoker receives side stream or direct stream smoke from a smoker in a confined area) does not get the benefit of the nicotine, but does appear to get the harm from the toxic mixture of chemicals. The World Health Organisation has documented evidence of the damage done to children and adults as result of them being exposed to second-hand-smoke in confined areas for prolonged periods of time; And there is evidence that such exposure may cause cognitive impairment. This is why there has been a worldwide move to ban smoking in public places and there is a move on at the moment to make smoking around children against the law (not yet come into practice). Parents who smoke in the car with the ‘window cracked open’ think that this is o.k. but the smoke (and its toxic mixture) still gets into the car and into the confined area (eg back seats) where their children might be sat. Just throwing a few thoughts based on the accumulating evidence your way.<br />
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<i>Thanks, Dr. Heffernan. So summing up, nicotine on its own may be beneficial to memory (more research to come). Cigarettes contain nicotine plus a number of chemicals that poison mind and body.&nbsp;</i></div>
Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-54401372592187275502012-07-05T13:07:00.008-07:002012-08-12T21:20:54.430-07:00Is Nicotine Good for Chemo Brain?<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-StLO_NoZhz4/T_Xs7emnhXI/AAAAAAAAASI/LRRaLeHuKqU/s1600/nicotine-patch.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-StLO_NoZhz4/T_Xs7emnhXI/AAAAAAAAASI/LRRaLeHuKqU/s1600/nicotine-patch.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>An interesting study but please don't start smoking...</i></span><br />
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In a study published in the <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22232050" target="_blank">January 10, 2012 issue of Neurology</a>, lead author Paul Newhouse, MD at&nbsp;Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and colleagues, found that nicotine patches may help with mild memory loss.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>About 75 seniors with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) participated in the study. None smoked. Half wore nicotine patches (15/mg per day) for six months. Half got a placebo. All went through memory tests at the start of the study and again three and six months later.<br />
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Results: The group wearing patches regained 46 percent of normal performance for their age on tests of long-term memory. Those not wearing the patches got worse by 26 percent.<br />
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It’s hard to know how this study relates to people with “chemo brain” as it didn’t specifically look at cancer-related cognitive impairment. But it is interesting to note that secondary findings included nicotine-induced improvements in psychomotor speed, attention and long-term memory. Deficits in those areas also happen to be hallmarks of chemo brain.<br />
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And there was another finding that in my mind falls into the category of weird science. If you read “Your Brain After Chemo,” then you may recall our discussion of research by Tim Ahles, PhD and Andrew Saykin, Psy.D., who looked at a specific gene type called apolipoprotein E, epsilon 4 allele (ApoE4). What they discovered was that long-term lymphoma and breast cancer survivors with this allele scored lower in visual memory, spatial ability and psychomotor functioning than survivors without the allele.<br />
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This allele has also been identified in about one-third of people with Alzheimer’s. Carriers of this allele are two-to-three times more likely to develop the disease and they are younger at diagnosis than others without the allele. Not a cheerful thought, I know.<br />
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The weird connection is in the discussion portion of the Neurology article (full text version). According to the authors, “<a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3055410/?tool=pubmed">A recent study</a> in young individuals demonstrated that nicotine had a greater cognitive activity in APOE4-positive individuals, suggesting that the cholinergic system may be upregulated in APOE4-positive individuals or in MCI.” In people language, those with this allele who are cognitively impaired may especially benefit from nicotine therapy. I wonder if the same could be said for people with chemo brain who are APOE4 positive. <br />
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Certainly we know that nicotine is dangerous to our health. So although these results are intriguing, further research hopefully will help explain the mechanism for <i>HOW</i> nicotine protects the brain. Once science moves forward on that, we’ll be one step closer to emerging cognitively unscathed after cancer treatment. </div>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-92227563940637976232012-06-26T18:29:00.002-07:002012-07-11T18:10:11.877-07:00UCLA Cognitive Rehabilitation Study Needs Participants<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><i>I<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">'ve been asked to post information about UCLA's cognitive rehabilitation study for anyone in the Los Angeles area who might like to participate.</span></i><br />
<a name='more'></a><i><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> I'm happy to do so. If others reading this blog know of other rehabilitation or intervention programs/studies, please contact me and I'll do my best to help spread the word.<br />
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The following is from UCLA's study information sheet. &nbsp;To learn more, call (310) 825-2520. -- ID</span></i><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>UCLA COGNITIVE REHABILITATION STUDY</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Were you recently treated for breast cancer? Do you feel that you have problems with memory and concentration since your breast cancer treatments?<br />
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<b>Purpose of study:</b><br />
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In this research study, the aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of a rehabilitation group intervention program for breast cancer survivors who are complaining of memory loss and concentration associated with cancer treatments.<br />
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<b>What does the study involve?</b><br />
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Visits to UCLA -- if you choose to take part in the research study, we will ask you to come to UCLA for an initial baseline visit, then once a week for a 5-week group intervention. We will then ask you to return for 2 more follow-up visits: a week or two after the group intervention has ended, then 2 months later. The first visit will take about three hours, the group intervention visits are 2 hours each, and the follow-up visits will take approximately 2.5 hours each. You will be mailed a survey questionnaire to complete at your home before your baseline and follow-up visits.<br />
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Taking part in a procedure called quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG). An EEG is a test that measures the electrical activity of the brain. The purpose of QEEG is to determine whether or not we can detect EEG patterns associated with cognitive complaints after breast cancer. This procedure will be conducted at 3 time points in the study.<br />
<br />
In this study, half of the women will be assigned by chance to participate immediately in the rehabilitation group intervention program and half will be assigned to a wait-list control group. This type of randomized study is necessary to scientifically prove that something is effective. The wait-list control group will also be able to participate in the group intervention, but not until after all the visits have been completed.<br />
<br />
<b>Project highlights</b><br />
<br />
About 60 women will take part in the study<br />
All visits will be held at UCLA and are free to study participants<br />
Funding has been provided by the Breast Cancer Research Foundation<br />
<br />
<b>Who is conducting the study?</b><br />
<br />
- Patricia Ganz, M.D., UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center<br />
- Linda Ercoli, Ph.D., UCLA Semel Institute<br />
- Steven Castellon, Ph.D., UCLA Semel Institute<br />
- Andrew Leuchter, M.D., UCLA Semel Institute<br />
<br />
<b>For more information: (310) 825-2520</b></span></div>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-85454824915473974132012-06-20T18:50:00.004-07:002012-07-05T13:24:39.117-07:00ASCO, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i style="font-size: x-large;">The organization that sets standards for cancer care does not include cognitive issues in their patient consent document</i>&nbsp;<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br />
</i></span><br />
</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p6VetOceJBA/T-J3cNfoRZI/AAAAAAAAARM/6QhEp0BFY6k/s1600/MP900316374.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><img border="0" height="135" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p6VetOceJBA/T-J3cNfoRZI/AAAAAAAAARM/6QhEp0BFY6k/s200/MP900316374.JPG" width="200" /></span></a></div><div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Last Thursday I was in Arlington, VA at the National Cancer Institute’s 6th Biennial Cancer Survivorship Research Conference. I had been asked to speak about cancer and cognition. Specifically, the organizers wanted me to comment on the “disconnect” between the research/medical community and the patient experience. </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> &nbsp;That wasn’t hard to do. As I told the audience, I know our book has made a difference. Yet I continue to receive letters from patients and former patients telling me that although they now understand what’s happened to them cognitively as a result of treatment, they can’t seem to get their medical teams to take their concerns seriously. A common thread is, they bring up their memory issues with their doctors only to have their worries waved away, dismissed, as if it’s all a figment of the imagination. <br />
<br />
To illustrate this disconnect, I showed a slide of a sample patient consent form that I <a href="http://www.asco.org/ASCOv2/Practice+%26+Guidelines/Quality+Care/Quality+Measurement+%26+Improvement/Informed+Consent+for+Chemotherapy+Administration" target="_blank">downloaded from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) website</a>. ASCO offers this form as a service to their members. Oncologists can then use the form to have their patients acknowledge the risks of chemotherapy. <br />
<br />
So what’s on this form that patients are asked to sign? Basically, it’s a list of all the potential side effects (you'll find the actual document <a href="http://www.asco.org/ASCOv2/Practice+%26+Guidelines/Quality+Care/Quality+Measurement+%26+Improvement/Informed+Consent+for+Chemotherapy+Administration" target="_blank">here</a>): <br />
</span><br />
<ul><li><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Nausea/vomiting&nbsp;</span></li>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
<li>Hair loss&nbsp;</li>
<li>Low red blood count&nbsp;</li>
<li>Fatigue&nbsp;</li>
<li>Risk of infection&nbsp;</li>
<li>Risk of bleeding&nbsp;</li>
<li>Constipation&nbsp;</li>
<li>Diarrhea&nbsp;</li>
<li>Mouth and throat sores&nbsp;</li>
<li>Skin effects&nbsp;</li>
<li>Muscle/bone effects&nbsp;</li>
<li>Nerve effects&nbsp;</li>
<li>Kidney/bladder effects&nbsp;</li>
<li>Sexual effects&nbsp;</li>
<li>Heart effects&nbsp;</li>
<li>Lung effects&nbsp;</li>
<li>Reproductive/fertility effects&nbsp;</li>
<li>Other&nbsp;</li>
</span></ul><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It doesn’t take more than a single glance to see what’s missing. And of course, that would be language such as “memory or other cognitive effects.” That warning has not been incorporated into the consent document even though cognitive issues can be far more debilitating than hair loss and nausea. <br />
<br />
Now this is ASCO, a 30,000-member strong organization made up of oncologists and oncology professionals that sets the standards for patient care worldwide. It is their mission to advance the education of physicians and other professionals who care for cancer patients. <br />
<br />
And even though ASCO is highly respected and tremendously valuable, at least on this point, it doesn’t seem like it’s doing a very good job. If the professional association that sets standards for oncologists doesn’t seem to be aware of cancer-related cognitive dysfunction, is it any wonder that clinicians in their hospital and community practices dismiss their patients’ concerns as frivolous? <br />
<br />
Adding another bullet and line of text to this 2008 consent document would take two seconds. But it’s really not about that. It’s about awareness. It’s about leadership. </span></div>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-14372574288662224012012-06-04T13:15:00.007-07:002012-07-17T09:27:13.778-07:00How Stress Affects Memory<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wezmRK6fymM/T80Va8lEa6I/AAAAAAAAAQ0/elLhVKT2jGo/s1600/MP900426461.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="131" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wezmRK6fymM/T80Va8lEa6I/AAAAAAAAAQ0/elLhVKT2jGo/s200/MP900426461.JPG" width="200" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We know from several studies now that some patients show cognitive decline just prior to cancer treatment. </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> And as I’ve written in other posts, this has led to a whole new realm of study looking at how inflammatory molecules, called “cytokines,“ may be contributing to post-diagnosis problems with memory and concentration and word retrieval, etc. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But there are other theories as well. We discuss one in our book that relates to stress (depression also) and how it may affect memory (a recent study in the <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?term=Stress%2C%20Coping%20and%20Cognitive%20Deficits%20in%20Women%20After%20Surgery%20for%20Breast%20Cancer.%20Published%20online%20January%2010%2C%202012%2C%20in%20the%20Journal%20for%20Clinical%">Journal of Clinical Psychology</a> supports the stress-memory connection). Fear and anxiety can produce a debilitating drop in energy and mood, and cloud how we think. So it’s good to understand how stress affects our minds and find ways to cope, whether you’re dealing with cancer or not. <br />
<br />
The material below is adapted from our book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Your-Brain-After-Chemo-Practical/dp/0738213918/ref=tmm_pap_title_0" target="_blank">Your Brain After Chemo.</a> I hope it helps. <br />
<br />
<b>Fight or Flight?</b> <br />
Short-term stress creates a chemical reaction in our bodies known as the fight-or-flight response. It’s a reaction that is so primitive and hardwired into our genetic makeup that from the beginning of human existence it has helped ensure our survival. This response helped our ancestors defeat or run from jungle predators. Physically what happens is, our pulse quickens. We breathe harder. Our pupils dilate. Our livers release more glucose into our blood to provide extra energy to our muscles and brain. <br />
<br />
<b>Fighting Tigers</b><br />
These kinds of short-term stresses are our physical and emotional tigers and have stayed with us through evolution. We release these stress chemicals when someone cuts us off on the highway and when our “Type A” personality kicks into overdrive. When the threat disappears, we can relax. Our brain calls off its “red alert.” Our sympathetic nervous system slows. Our parasympathetic nervous system resumes its maintenance functions. <br />
<br />
<b>What Color is Your Cortisol?</b><br />
But there are also long-term stresses that may damage the brain and the immune system over time. This happens when our brains remain on “orange alert,” when we feel helpless, perhaps when we have been ill and when worry and grief consume us. When that happens, we release another set of hormones, the best studied of which is called cortisol. We release this hormone from the cortical (outer shell portion) of our adrenal glands and pump it into our bloodstream. <br />
<br />
We even know from blood and amniotic fluid samples of pregnant women who are stressed that high amounts of cortisol will affect the neuroendocrine systems of their <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17492950" target="_blank">developing fetuses</a>. Biologically, these babies will be <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18049295" target="_blank">more sensitive </a>to stress. <br />
<br />
Over the long term, cortisol suppresses our immune systems, and we become less able to fight off infections. Too much cortisol will also directly affect the brain . . . for example, cortisol can shrink cells in the hippocampus, a part of the brain that is necessary for forming and accessing memories. <br />
<br />
<b>Aiming for Calm</b><br />
What’s interesting is there’s also a relaxation response which returns our bodies to a normal state. So relaxation techniques such as meditation (we include an exercise in our book), physical exercise, qi gong, yoga, talking about your stressors with a friend or a psychotherapist, help break the momentum. For more on this, see our chapter, “Fear, Stress, and Mindfulness.”</span>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-64644998882261743712012-03-02T02:45:00.011-08:002012-03-07T16:36:39.336-08:00Cedars-Sinai Program Helps Professor Emerge From Haze<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QJy8QJcAu5A/T0wXNpgX4PI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/fQzsgDywVEQ/s1600/Karen+Saywitz+photo.JPG" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QJy8QJcAu5A/T0wXNpgX4PI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/fQzsgDywVEQ/s200/Karen+Saywitz+photo.JPG" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Karen Saywitz, PhD</td></tr>
</tbody></table><i>Karen Saywitz, PhD, is a cancer survivor who -- thanks to a <a href="http://www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients/Programs-and-Services/Samuel-Oschin-Comprehensive-Cancer-Institute-/Cancer-Survivorship-and-Rehabilitation.aspx">rehabilitation program at Cedars-Sinai</a> -- has found strategies to help with post-treatment cognitive issues. Last month, she shared her story at the <a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunity.org/">Cancer Support Community (CSC)</a> - Benjamin Center in Los Angeles. Joining her were fellow panelists: <a href="http://www.michaelstable.com/qigong.html" target="_blank">Michael Sieverts</a>, a patient advocate and CSC qi gong instructor; Mi-Yeoung Jo, PsyD, ABPP, a Cedars-Sinai clinical neuropsychologist; Arash Asher, MD, director of the Cedars-Sinai Cancer Survivorship and Rehabilitation Program; and myself. What follows is Karen's talk from that evening. -- ID</i><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">By Karen Saywitz, PhD</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Before I was diagnosed with cancer, I led a fast-paced life. I was a tenured professor at a major university who conducted research, taught seminars and I ran a clinical program with a staff of 20 M.D.s, Ph.D.s, and social workers--a program that delivered mental health services to families of children prenatally exposed to drugs and alcohol. I traveled some, consulting for the Department of Health and Human Services, The Centers for Disease Control, and the American Psychological Association. In fact, two days before I was diagnosed, I had been in Washington, DC, giving a congressional briefing in the Senate Building on children’s mental health care. Most nights I was making a healthy dinner for my husband and my two children, driving carpools, attending my daughter’s concerts, and cooking multi-course holiday meals for a crowd. <br />
<br />
After my diagnosis, I had multiple surgeries with the obligatory complications, picked up a host of infections because my immune system was suppressed, and had six months of chemotherapy until I couldn’t take it anymore. By the end, I was walking into walls and cabinets, pretty out of it. My uncharacteristic ditzy conversation was a source of great amusement for my daughters and sisters. I wasn’t driving, grocery shopping, cooking for my family, socializing or working…..I had basically been in bed for 9 months. But after the most intense period of treatment was complete and I had survived the life-and-death battle, there remained a variety of symptoms and side effects that had not remitted. Among them, these nagging cognitive difficulties: symptoms I came to learn were not uncommon after cancer treatment. <br />
<br />
One day I went to fax something, I put in the wrong number. I walked back to the desk, looked at the number a second time, walked to the fax machine, same thing, a third time, same thing. As a psychologist I knew that usually you have about 12 seconds of short-term memory without rehearsing something before it fades. Obviously there was something wrong with my short-term memory; it didn’t take that long to walk across the room. My husband, who was talking to me about something entirely different, offered to do it for me. The next day, I went to compute some simple mental math and again, it was a problem, but once I picked up a paper and pencil I could do it easily. There was something wrong with my working memory, my mental scratch pad.<br />
<br />
I tried to start cooking meals again and found I had trouble staggering the cooking times of the dishes to get them all out of the oven at the same time. “Here, just eat the side dish first, I know you are hungry and its dinner time, but I just realized that the main dish still has another 40 minutes to go.” Something was wrong with my ability to multi-task. I had trouble talking on the phone while cooking, “Hello Mom…. Are you there?” I had trouble sustaining my attention across interruptions and distractions, switching attention back and forth between two frames of reference. People began alluding to things they had already told me in prior conversations that I did not remember, and I wondered if I did not encode the information because of distractions or interruptions to my attention. <br />
<br />
In addition to short term memory and multi-tasking, I noticed that there were a lot of mental tasks that took forever for me do, like finding the right words that I thought were on the tip of my tongue. I seemed to have such a slow speed of processing information, I could still do a lot of the same tasks, but it took a lot longer, I was worried about missing deadlines, giving lectures from memory. …Needless to say I was worried that my brain was broken and my re-entry into the workforce would be a disaster. All I could see was that the bright future I envisioned for myself was crumbling. I couldn’t imagine reciting research findings chapter and verse the way I used to. <br />
<br />
When I talked to my oncologist, Philemena McAndrew, she referred me to the Cedars Rehabilitation and Cancer Survivorship program where I met Dr. Asher and Dr Jo. Over the course of the next three months in their comprehensive rehabilitation program, I got out of bed and started exercising, slowly in fits and starts, going to physical therapy to regain range of movement so I could drive, and cooking my favorite recipes but first making a chart that worked backwards from dinner time. I started practicing qi gong two to three mornings a week, and wore a pedometer, trying to walk 10,000 steps a day. I attended a six-week class called, “Emerging from the Haze,” that involved a neuropsychological evaluation with feedback on how to work around my attention, processing, and memory problems. I figured out a wide range of strategies to compensate, accommodate and side step my problems. <br />
<br />
I would like to say that mine is a simple story of loss and recovery. And to some extent it is, there were certainly losses in terms of my abilities and I have made steady improvement. But I have yet to fully return to the same cognitive functioning I had before this all began. So I am going to say that it is a story of loss and resilience ….of patience, pacing, prioritizing, balancing, and hard work. Of course, I could not say what will work for someone else. Each cancer is different; each person’s reaction to treatment is different. But I fought for my brain. It took a lot of effort, but it was worth it. It has been like learning to read music and play the piano for the first time late in life. At first you have to look at your fingers, look up at the music, down and up, it’s a halting choppy, laborious procedure, your joints hurt and your hand eye coordination isn’t what it was, but if you persist, eventually you get things onto automatic pilot and you can play a piece without putting so much conscious effort into it. <br />
<br />
What I’ve learned is that the path to recovery takes a concerted, integrated effort of both physical and mental exercise, but it is also an extraordinary learning opportunity to develop new strengths and abilities. What did I do? In the chemo brain class I learned to be more self-aware, monitoring my cognitive errors over the course of a day or a week, what triggered them, under what circumstances they appeared, and what were the consequences. I learned to pace myself, use memory mnemonics like imagining a neon sign above a student’s head with their name on it or above my car with the level and section on it, because at a large university you can’t just park in the same spot each day. I learned to be more flexible, give myself breaks, to use checklists, giving myself more time on deadlines. <br />
<br />
Not everything I tried worked. I felt like a GPS navigation system that kept recalculating the route to my destination. I had a neuropsychological evaluation with Dr. Jo and she identified a certain type of memory problem: proactive memory interference. That meant new information would interfere with my ability to recall prior information, ie: trouble getting back on track once interrupted with new input. Dr. Jo and I talked about my returning to work and preparing detailed power points as an external cue to prompt my memory and stay on track, and having students wait until the end of the lecture to ask questions.<br />
<br />
But once I started back to work, I would inevitably run over and there wasn’t time for questions… and the class was boring! During all those months at home in bed with my iPad, I had become an aficionado of the internet, Ted Talks and YouTube. So I started using internet video clips to demonstrate concepts better than I ever explained them before by citing all those research findings chapter and verse by heart. I got over my pride and started telling students, "I don’t know the answer to that question off the top of my head, I’ll look that up and get back to you,“ and then wrote down their questions. <br />
<br />
Now, I am happy to say this is my second semester of teaching again at the university. I would say that the last lecture I gave on Thursday is one of the best I have ever given. Not one student had the nerve to check his BlackBerry during class. That could be a first. I give the students more of the wisdom I’ve gained through this process, lessons for life. And most of the time, I can find my car in the university parking lot on the first try. <br />
<br />
Michael asked that each speaker provide three take-home points. So what did I learn? <br />
<br />
1. Be resilient. If you find you have some nagging cognitive problems after the intense treatment phase is complete, it’s a setback, but be flexible and persevere. <br />
<br />
2. Be proactive. It is not realistic for oncologists or surgeons to be responsible for this transitional stage of your care. They simply do not have the time or expertise. Accept that there will be a transitional stage of rehabilitation during which there is a lot we patients can do to influence our internal biology, educate ourselves, and seek professional help from the field of rehabilitation medicine and neuropsychology. This can make a huge difference in the level of functioning we attain. These are core health care issues, not optional or ancillary ones. <br />
<br />
3. Develop an observing ego and keep moving forward. Find a viewpoint from which you can observe yourself and how you interact with the world you live in. From this you will see choices, options, for being in control again. Use your brain. Learn something fun that revitalizes you rather than drains you. I no longer believe I will be returning to my previous life. I think that the landscape has changed forever; I am going forward, in new directions, still on a magnificent journey. - Karen Saywitz<br />
<br />
Resources:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients/Programs-and-Services/Samuel-Oschin-Comprehensive-Cancer-Institute-/Cancer-Survivorship-and-Rehabilitation.aspx">Cedars-Sinai Cancer Survivorship and Rehabilitation</a>: (310) 423-2111<br />
<a href="http://www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients/Programs-and-Services/Psychology/Services/Neuropsychology-Services/">Cedars-Sinai Neuropsychology Services</a>: (310) 423-9722<br />
<a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunity.org/">Cancer Support Community</a>: (888) 793-9355<br />
<a href="http://www.michaelstable.com/qigong.html">Michael Sieverts' Blog</a>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-70682217122119637072012-02-28T16:51:00.006-08:002012-03-02T02:48:20.694-08:00Cognitive Effects of CMF May Last 20 Years<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8ELzKpYvPaM/T01wQQnViwI/AAAAAAAAAQY/fAyWJGvIDYM/s1600/J+of+C+O.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8ELzKpYvPaM/T01wQQnViwI/AAAAAAAAAQY/fAyWJGvIDYM/s200/J+of+C+O.jpg" width="152" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In a study reported yesterday in the <a href="http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-02/asoc-sbf022712.php#" target="_blank">Journal of Clinical Oncology</a>, researchers found that breast cancer patients who received the chemotherapy regimen CMF between 1976 and 1995, scored significantly worse on tests of word recall, information processing speed, and psychomotor speed (coordinating and inserting pegs into a board) than a control group of women who had no history of cancer.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">CMF stands for the drugs cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and 5-fluorouracil (or 5 FU). Animal studies also show that CMF is linked with impaired learning and changes in brain structure and we report on this in Your Brain After Chemo. Yet this recent study, led by Dutch researchers Vincent Koppelmans and Sanne B. Schagen, is the first to show such long-term impairment. <br />
<br />
The pattern of memory problems is similar to what patients experience shortly after completing chemotherapy, say the authors who looked at the neuropsychologic test results of 196 women, comparing them to the controls.<br />
<br />
Fortunately for newly diagnosed breast cancer patients, oncologists generally no longer prescribe the “M” in CMF. &nbsp;Instead they replace it with anthracycline-based drugs (ie: doxorubicin instead of methotrexate) which seem to have fewer cognitive side effects. Cyclophosphamide and 5-fluorouracil are still prescribed though and 5-fluorouracil also is linked to post-chemo cognitive decline in some studies.<br />
<br />
For those of us in the cancer community who keep a close watch on the research, studies like these – while upsetting – inspire hope that one day soon more effective targeted therapies will kill cancer cells while leaving healthy brain cells intact. <i>-- ID</i></span><br />
<div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span></div><div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;">Journal Abstract: <a href="http://jco.ascopubs.org/content/early/2012/02/27/JCO.2011.37.0189.abstract" target="_blank">Neuropsychological Performance in Survivors of Breast Cancer More Than 20 Years After Adjuvant Chemotherapy</a></span></div>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-82362452523336079292012-02-23T16:17:00.022-08:002012-03-07T16:26:14.064-08:00Michael Sieverts' Tips/Tricks to Recover Your Life<i>My friend, <a href="http://www.michaelstable.com/qigong.html" target="_blank">Michael Sieverts</a>, is a 10-year brain cancer survivor, a highly respected patient advocate, and a qi gong instructor for the <a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunity.org/" target="_blank">Cancer Support Community</a>. He is exceptionally well-read on the topics of brain health and cancer-related cognitive decline. ID</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5eS_cIVhhR0/T0aiQwdNqWI/AAAAAAAAAQI/gxcnlnLkFzk/s1600/michael+sedona+%281%29.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5eS_cIVhhR0/T0aiQwdNqWI/AAAAAAAAAQI/gxcnlnLkFzk/s200/michael+sedona+%281%29.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Michael Sieverts</td></tr>
</tbody></table><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5eS_cIVhhR0/T0aiQwdNqWI/AAAAAAAAAQI/gxcnlnLkFzk/s1600/michael+sedona+%281%29.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div>By Michael Sieverts<br />
<br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">This is a handout for the “Chemobrain” panel I moderated on February 21st at the Cancer Support Community-Benjamin Center. From my introduction that evening:<br />
<br />
This is an incredibly important moment in the history of cancer treatment, and we appear to be at an inflection point in terms of understanding the multitude of diseases we refer to collectively as cancer. A good deal of the excitement has to do with scientific</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a name='more'></a>breakthroughs in new imaging refinements, a greater understanding of genetics and the merging of math, chemistry, biology and physics. Young scientists aren’t staying in one discipline any more, instead they take up careers such as, “computational biologist,” and collaborate across disciplines.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">But the other area of enormous progress, which is emerging as we speak, is the voice of the patient—our voice. As medicine becomes more collaborative, as we access our own information on the web and through other sources, and as we start talking to EACH OTHER and acquiring a collective intelligence, we have within our grasp the tools to take the entire enterprise to a whole different level.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">This is not merely consistent with the mission of the Cancer Support Community—it IS the mission: that by becoming an active participant in your fight for recovery, along with your healthcare team, you’ll have a better quality of life.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">One thing that’s important to keep in mind is that THIS IS A NICE PROBLEM TO HAVE—because by definition, having chemo brain is an indication that you’re alive. This is not a small victory, considering how many of us are here tonight despite having illnesses that not so long ago were characterized as “invariably fatal.” What a luxury, at one level, to have the focus shift from “how do I stay alive” to “how do I have a good quality of life?”</div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>Michael’s Tips and Tricks to Recover Your Life</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Even though these tips and tricks are divided into categories, there are actually no real divisions. When you go to a support group, for example, you acquire important and relevant medical information about your illness. When you go to an exercise class, you get support from the other class members and improve your cognition. When you meditate, you gain calmness and increase your focus. And so on.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">If I had to limit myself to one sentence of advice, I’d be hard-pressed. But here goes: pay close, moment-to-moment nonjudgmental attention to what’s happening in you and around you, get and stay healthy, get support, claim your strengths without obsessing about what you perceive as your failings, and be grateful and peaceful whenever you can manage it.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I highly encourage you to seek out people to support you in the process, people who have gone through what you’re going through—their advice and support is invaluable. If your illness is so obscure or rare that you can’t find other survivors locally, use the Internet to locate others—just about every disease has its own community at this point. That’s how you’re going to find the right treatments and right doctors—the good doctors get better results.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Techniques to Build Cognition:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Build your memory: challenge your brain by learning a new language or a musical instrument. Doing crosswords and Sudoku are fine, but the skills involved don’t seem to translate to tackling other kinds of tasks.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Keep your mind active—keep a journal, read literature and poetry, go to concerts and museums and lectures.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Be actively involved in your medical treatment. Research and understand your illness—become a partner in your recovery with your medical team, stay current on advances in the field, join the e-patient movement.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Research which parts of your brain are not functioning well, because that will inform you about where to direct your recovery effort.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Find the best doctors for your specific illness, and then make them look like geniuses by having the best recovery possible.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Find gentle ways of challenging yourself, look for your true talents—your gifts will always be your gifts, in my experience.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Practice—aim for continual improvement and develop good habits.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Treat your attention as a valuable resource, spend it wisely.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">“Ever try. Ever fail. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.” – Samuel Beckett</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Reading List and Web Resources:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Your-Brain-After-Chemo-Practical/dp/0738213918">Your Brain After Chemo: A Practical Guide to Lifting the Fog and Getting Back Your Focus</a>&nbsp;by Dan Silverman, MD, PhD, and Idelle Davidson</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: blue;">www.YourBrainAfterChemo.blogspot.com</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">Brain</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">Rules</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">: 12&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">Principles</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">for</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">Surviving</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">and</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">Thriving</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">at</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">Work</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">Home</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">and</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-Rules-Principles-Surviving-Thriving/dp/0979777747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">School</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/John-Medina/e/B002BLNBUW/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">John</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/John-Medina/e/B002BLNBUW/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/John-Medina/e/B002BLNBUW/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322533735&amp;sr=8-1">Medina</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.brainrules.net/">http</a><a href="http://www.brainrules.net/">://</a><a href="http://www.brainrules.net/">www</a><a href="http://www.brainrules.net/">.</a><a href="http://www.brainrules.net/">brainrules</a><a href="http://www.brainrules.net/">.</a><a href="http://www.brainrules.net/">net</a><a href="http://www.brainrules.net/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Brain</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">That</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Changes</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Itself</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Stories</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Personal</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Triumph</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">from</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">the</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Frontiers</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Brain</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Science</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;(</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Null</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Brain-That-Changes-Itself-Frontiers/dp/0143113100/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">)</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Norman-Doidge/e/B0045AT60G/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Norman</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Norman-Doidge/e/B0045AT60G/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Norman-Doidge/e/B0045AT60G/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534304&amp;sr=8-1">Doidge</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Memory</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Bible</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">An</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Innovative</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Strategy</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">For</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Keeping</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Your</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Brain</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Memory-Bible-Innovative-Strategy-Keeping/dp/0786887117/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Young</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gary-W.-Small/e/B001HPXK86/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Gary</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gary-W.-Small/e/B001HPXK86/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gary-W.-Small/e/B001HPXK86/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">W</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gary-W.-Small/e/B001HPXK86/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">.&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Gary-W.-Small/e/B001HPXK86/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534440&amp;sr=1-1">Small</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">http</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">://</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">www</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">.</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">semel</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">.</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">ucla</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">.</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">edu</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">/</a><a href="http://www.semel.ucla.edu/longevity">longevity</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Body</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Has</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">a</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Mind</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Its</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Own</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">How</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Body</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Maps</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">in</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Your</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Brain</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Help</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">You</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Do</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;(</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Almost</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">)&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Everything</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Body-Has-Mind-Its-Own/dp/0812975278/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359504&amp;sr=8-1">Better</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sandra-Blakeslee/e/B001ILMBW0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359502&amp;sr=8-1">Sandra</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sandra-Blakeslee/e/B001ILMBW0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359502&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sandra-Blakeslee/e/B001ILMBW0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359502&amp;sr=8-1">Blakeslee and Matthew Blakeslee</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Better-Brain-Book-David-Perlmutter/dp/1594480931/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359636&amp;sr=8-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Better-Brain-Book-David-Perlmutter/dp/1594480931/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359636&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Better-Brain-Book-David-Perlmutter/dp/1594480931/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359636&amp;sr=8-1">Better</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Better-Brain-Book-David-Perlmutter/dp/1594480931/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359636&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Better-Brain-Book-David-Perlmutter/dp/1594480931/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359636&amp;sr=8-1">Brain</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Better-Brain-Book-David-Perlmutter/dp/1594480931/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359636&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Better-Brain-Book-David-Perlmutter/dp/1594480931/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359636&amp;sr=8-1">Book</a>&nbsp;by David Perlmutter and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Carol-Colman/e/B001IGLNTM/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359633&amp;sr=8-1">Carol</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Carol-Colman/e/B001IGLNTM/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359633&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Carol-Colman/e/B001IGLNTM/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359633&amp;sr=8-1">Colman</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.powerupyourbrain.com/">http</a><a href="http://www.powerupyourbrain.com/">://</a><a href="http://www.powerupyourbrain.com/">www</a><a href="http://www.powerupyourbrain.com/">.</a><a href="http://www.powerupyourbrain.com/">powerupyourbrain</a><a href="http://www.powerupyourbrain.com/">.</a><a href="http://www.powerupyourbrain.com/">com</a><a href="http://www.powerupyourbrain.com/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">Incognito</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">Secret</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">Lives</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">the</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Secret-Lives-David-Eagleman/dp/0307377334/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534382&amp;sr=1-1">Brain</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Eagleman/e/B001JRX0OQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534379&amp;sr=1-1">David</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Eagleman/e/B001JRX0OQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534379&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Eagleman/e/B001JRX0OQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534379&amp;sr=1-1">Eagleman</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.eagleman.com/">http</a><a href="http://www.eagleman.com/">://</a><a href="http://www.eagleman.com/">www</a><a href="http://www.eagleman.com/">.</a><a href="http://www.eagleman.com/">eagleman</a><a href="http://www.eagleman.com/">.</a><a href="http://www.eagleman.com/">com</a><a href="http://www.eagleman.com/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">SAT Question of the Day:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">http</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">://</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">sat</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">.</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">collegeboard</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">.</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">org</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">/</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">practice</a><a href="http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Word a Day:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://wordsmith.org/awad/">http</a><a href="http://wordsmith.org/awad/">://</a><a href="http://wordsmith.org/awad/">wordsmith</a><a href="http://wordsmith.org/awad/">.</a><a href="http://wordsmith.org/awad/">org</a><a href="http://wordsmith.org/awad/">/</a><a href="http://wordsmith.org/awad/">awad</a><a href="http://wordsmith.org/awad/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Seek out intelligent discussions:</div><div style="text-align: left;">TED talks:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">http</a><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">://</a><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">www</a><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">.</a><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">ted</a><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">.</a><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">com</a><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">/</a><a href="http://www.ted.com/talks">talks</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Google Talks:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">http</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">://</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">www</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">.</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">youtube</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">.</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">com</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">/</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">user</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">/</a><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/AtGoogleTalks">AtGoogleTalks</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Poptech Talks:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://poptech.org/">http</a><a href="http://poptech.org/">://</a><a href="http://poptech.org/">poptech</a><a href="http://poptech.org/">.</a><a href="http://poptech.org/">org</a><a href="http://poptech.org/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">e-patient movement:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://e-patients.net/">http</a><a href="http://e-patients.net/">://</a><a href="http://e-patients.net/">e</a><a href="http://e-patients.net/">-</a><a href="http://e-patients.net/">patients</a><a href="http://e-patients.net/">.</a><a href="http://e-patients.net/">net</a><a href="http://e-patients.net/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Charlie Rose’s Brain Series:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">http</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">://</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">www</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">.</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">charlierose</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">.</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">com</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">/</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">view</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">/</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">collection</a><a href="http://www.charlierose.com/view/collection/10702">/10702</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Compensation Strategies (adapted from “Your Brain After Chemo”):</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Stay present. Remind yourself to focus. Learn to meditate, and to pause before you take an action.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Prioritize. Don’t think that you can multitask and perform. Do fewer things and do them well. What you decide not to do might be as important as what you actually decide to do.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Develop routines. Keep the same daily schedule as much as possible. Prepare for the day the night before by reviewing your calendar. Exercise and eat at regular times, use a divided pillbox to remind you to take your medications properly.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Rehearse. “Repeat to remember” to improve short-term memory, “remember to repeat” for longer term memory.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Tell yourself stories about the person you just met. Say the name out loud, ask them to spell it, remark on the similarities to a celebrity’s name, or to someone else you know with the same name.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use word associations and rhyming. This increases the impact of a name or address on memory.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Cue the senses.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Break numbers into chunks.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Don’t use scratch paper. Instead use a single notebook.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use a paper daily planner to write down all your activities, even movies and chores—and remember to look at it. You remember things better when you write them by hand than if you type them on a keyboard.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use your planner to keep track of your memory problems and other symptoms, so you can discuss changes in your condition with your doctor, who’s going to want to know what happened and when. Do not ignore symptoms, regard them as a blessing, if they lead you to solving a problem earlier than later.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Everything in its place. Always put keys, checkbook, cell phone and wallet in exactly the same places. Start regarding your purse or backpack as a system.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Chew gum, yawn—increases oxygen flow to the brain.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Retain a sense of humor—it’s lighter than you think. Self-forgiveness is an important way to “get over it.”</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Sometimes something that seems terrible can be viewed from a different angle, and regarded as not only not so serious, but maybe as a benefit—and possibly as a great benefit.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Manage your technology:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use email to make a data trail of conversations and commitments, and ask family and friends to sign on too to this method of communicating.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● If you have a task to accomplish, don’t respond to every email as it comes in—look at them and respond to them in batches.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Manage the phone—don’t answer unless you know who it is and it’s someone you want to talk to at that moment. Use anonymous call blocking, caller ID, and an answering machine to screen calls.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Minimize television viewing, especially TV news.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Don’t expect a smart phone to replace a computer—it’s too hard to read attachments on a phone, you don’t retain the information the same way.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use your computer’s alarm functions to remind you to do certain tasks—moving the car for street cleaning, for example, or picking up kids.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Leave messages for yourself as reminders. Call your own answering machine.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use a timer when cooking, stay near the stove when it’s on, don’t wander away from the kitchen.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Driving:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● If you drive a car, be aware that cognitive deficits don’t make you a better driver, and that a car is a weapon to bicycles and pedestrians.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Drive carefully, on familiar routes, being patient and generous with other drivers.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Allow enough time or permit yourself to be slightly late—“caught in traffic” is a completely valid excuse in LA.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● If you are feeling iffy about your cognition—we can often tell when we’re not 100%--either stay home or, if you’re out, drive slowly and carefully home.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Drowsiness is a cause for red alert—pull over immediately.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Learn the bus system, let professionals drive you where you need to go.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Reading List and Web Resources:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">Getting</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">Things</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">Done</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">Art</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">Stress</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">-</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">Free</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">Productivity</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Allen/e/B001ILIG4C/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">David</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Allen/e/B001ILIG4C/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Allen/e/B001ILIG4C/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359288&amp;sr=8-1">Allen</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">One</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Small</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Step</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Can</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Change</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Your</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Life</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Kaizen</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Small-Step-Change-Your-Life/dp/0761129235/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Way</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Robert-Maurer/e/B001H6GCR6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Robert</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Robert-Maurer/e/B001H6GCR6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Robert-Maurer/e/B001H6GCR6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359410&amp;sr=8-1">Maurer</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Meditation:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">There are many forms of meditation, and choosing one over the other is a matter of personal preference. I happen to like mindfulness-based meditation, as promulgated by Jon Kabat-Zinn—the tone of his advice is just right for me and many others, but it might not be for you, you might prefer a meditation technique that utilizes a mantra, like Transcendental Meditation, or any of the other forms. No matter—you can use any one of them to deeply explore your consciousness.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The key thing to remember is that learning to be in the present, in the now, is both utterly simple and very challenging. It can take a lifetime to learn. Even the Dalai Lama says that he’s still learning.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">There’s a reason they call it a practice:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">When we are giving ourselves the experience of being relaxed, calm, alert and objective, we are practicing and perfecting mindfulness. When we are being tense or angry or anxious, we are practicing and perfecting being those states as well—BUT, if we are observing that we are going to those places while we’re doing it, we have the opportunity to take ourselves back to the relaxed place. It’s ultimately about cultivating an inner strength.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I’ve heard the distinction made between prayer and mediation is that when you pray you’re talking, you’re asking for something—and when you meditate you’re just listening. Some people call it “falling awake.”</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">There’s a huge body of literature, and courses offered everywhere, many for free.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">You can study in classes, and go on retreats, which are great, but ultimately the idea is to be able to live your whole life with a mindful aspect. As my teacher says, “lead an ordinary life and make changes from within that life.”</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Don’t let your environment throw you off, cultivate inner strength and the ability to not let your mind wander.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Reading List and Web Resources:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Full</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Catastrophe</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Living</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Using</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">the</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Wisdom</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Your</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Body</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">and</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Mind</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">to</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Face</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Stress</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Pain</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">and</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Full-Catastrophe-Living-Wisdom-Illness/dp/0385303122/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359707&amp;sr=8-1">Illness</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jon-Kabat-Zinn/e/B000AQ12GA/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359704&amp;sr=8-1">Jon</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jon-Kabat-Zinn/e/B000AQ12GA/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359704&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jon-Kabat-Zinn/e/B000AQ12GA/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359704&amp;sr=8-1">Kabat</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jon-Kabat-Zinn/e/B000AQ12GA/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359704&amp;sr=8-1">-</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jon-Kabat-Zinn/e/B000AQ12GA/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359704&amp;sr=8-1">Zinn</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;(You can Google Jon Kabat-Zinn for tapes, CD’s and online videos)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Heart</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Understanding</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Commentaries</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">on</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">the</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Prajnaparamita</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Heart</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Heart-Understanding-Commentaries-Prajnaparamita-Sutra/dp/1888375922/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Sutra</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thich-Nhat-Hanh/e/B000AP5YRY/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Thich</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thich-Nhat-Hanh/e/B000AP5YRY/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thich-Nhat-Hanh/e/B000AP5YRY/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Nhat</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thich-Nhat-Hanh/e/B000AP5YRY/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Thich-Nhat-Hanh/e/B000AP5YRY/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329754608&amp;sr=8-1">Hanh</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.plumvillage.org/">http</a><a href="http://www.plumvillage.org/">://</a><a href="http://www.plumvillage.org/">www</a><a href="http://www.plumvillage.org/">.</a><a href="http://www.plumvillage.org/">plumvillage</a><a href="http://www.plumvillage.org/">.</a><a href="http://www.plumvillage.org/">org</a><a href="http://www.plumvillage.org/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">When</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Things</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Fall</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Apart</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Heart</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Advice</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">for</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Difficult</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Times</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;(</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Shambhala</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Library</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/When-Things-Fall-Apart-Difficult/dp/1570629692/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">)</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pema-Chodron/e/B000AP9Y2A/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_4?qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Pema</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pema-Chodron/e/B000AP9Y2A/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_4?qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pema-Chodron/e/B000AP9Y2A/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_4?qid=1329754656&amp;sr=8-4">Chodron</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">Fingerpainting</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">on</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">the</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">Moon</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">Writing</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">and</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">Creativity</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">as</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">a</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">Path</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">to</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fingerpainting-Moon-Writing-Creativity-Freedom/dp/0609610481/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">Freedom</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Peter-Levitt/e/B001IXNY2Y/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">Peter</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Peter-Levitt/e/B001IXNY2Y/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Peter-Levitt/e/B001IXNY2Y/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329754707&amp;sr=8-1">Levitt</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Exercise/Sleep (adapted from “Brain Rules”)</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Exercise:</div><div style="text-align: left;">Properly done to avoid depletion and injury, exercise is one of the best things you can do for your cognition. Early human brains developed in almost continuous motion, hunting and gathering food, walking vast distances daily. Only recently have we become physically idle.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">All exercise increases blood flow and oxygen levels. Increased oxygen to the brain is associated with improved cognitive function. Exercise rids the body of stress chemicals, and boosts brain power. It cuts the risk of dementia in half.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">My observation is that the healthier you are, the easier it is to survive the treatments. If you have the “luxury” knowing that a treatment or procedure is imminent (as opposed to requiring an emergency surgery), prepare yourself by getting as strong as possible. Train as if you’re training for a triathalon, you’ll need all the strength you can muster.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Your regular exercise:</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Exercise daily, but not necessarily vigorously—at least 30 minutes, out in natural light and fresh air when feasible.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Power walking, swinging light weights in your hands to involve your upper body, is a great way to get exercise. Human brains evolved as we walked great distances, and it remains the best all-round exercise.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Gentle yoga, Feldenkrais, Qi Gong—explore to find the ones that work best for you.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Any exercise that makes you feel light—that’s the right one for you.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Avoid exercise that depletes you, which is bad for your immune system.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Sleep:</div><div style="text-align: left;">Sleep is incredibly important, for cognition, for the immune system, for mood and happiness, so develop good sleep hygiene. Avoid going deep into sleep debt—accumulating consecutive nights of short sleep. “You can’t be healthy if you’re not getting good sleep”:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Go to bed at a regular time, preferably before 11pm.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Avoid stimulating activity for the few hours before bed, prepare.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Avoid eating before going to bed.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Don’t watch television, or work on a computer in bed.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use relaxation techniques to help yourself fall asleep.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use the bedroom only for sleeping and sex, not for eating or working.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Keep the bedroom dark—light interferes with the functioning of your pineal gland.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● If you are occasionally unable to sleep, don’t stress about it, get up for a little while and do something else, preferably not too stimulating.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● If you feel drowsiness, be extremely careful, you literally could fall asleep in a heartbeat—do not drive!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● If you’re having regular trouble sleeping, see a specialist.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Reading List and Web Resources:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">Spark</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">Revolutionary</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">New</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">Science</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">Exercise</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">and</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">the</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Spark-Revolutionary-Science-Exercise-Brain/dp/0316113506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">Brain</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/John-J.-Ratey/e/B000APBGD0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">John</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/John-J.-Ratey/e/B000APBGD0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/John-J.-Ratey/e/B000APBGD0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">J</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/John-J.-Ratey/e/B000APBGD0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">.&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/John-J.-Ratey/e/B000APBGD0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">Ratey</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Eric-Hagerman/e/B001H6N3GO/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">Eric</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Eric-Hagerman/e/B001H6N3GO/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Eric-Hagerman/e/B001H6N3GO/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1322534337&amp;sr=1-1">Hagerman</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Way</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Energy</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Mastering</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">the</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Chinese</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Art</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Internal</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Strength</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">with</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Chi</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Kung</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Exercise</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;(</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">A</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Gaia</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Original</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Way-Energy-Mastering-Internal-Strength/dp/0671736450/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">)</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kam-Chuen-Lam/e/B000APF1GI/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Kam</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kam-Chuen-Lam/e/B000APF1GI/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kam-Chuen-Lam/e/B000APF1GI/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Chuen</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kam-Chuen-Lam/e/B000APF1GI/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kam-Chuen-Lam/e/B000APF1GI/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329687798&amp;sr=8-1">Lam</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">The</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Promise</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Sleep</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">A</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Pioneer</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">in</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Sleep</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Medicine</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Explores</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">the</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Vital</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Connection</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Between</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Health</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Happiness</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">and</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">a</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Good</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Night</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">'</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">s</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Sleep</a>by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/William-C.-Dement/e/B001IQW8O6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">William</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/William-C.-Dement/e/B001IQW8O6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/William-C.-Dement/e/B001IQW8O6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">C</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/William-C.-Dement/e/B001IQW8O6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">.&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/William-C.-Dement/e/B001IQW8O6/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Dement</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Christopher-Vaughan/e/B000AQ74GC/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Christopher</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Christopher-Vaughan/e/B000AQ74GC/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Christopher-Vaughan/e/B000AQ74GC/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1327359674&amp;sr=8-1">Vaughan</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">http</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">://</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">www</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">.</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">bettermovement</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">.</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">org</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">/</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">author</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">/</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">toddhargrove</a><a href="http://www.bettermovement.org/author/toddhargrove/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Nutrition (adapted from “Food Rules”):</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Eating should be a source of pleasure. The reality is that we’re omnivores, and people have been thriving on a wide variety of diets for millenia. Michael Pollan says that the field of nutrition today is like the field of surgery in 1650—promising, and interesting to watch, but not yet deserving of our total trust. The popular press has made a total hash of the field of nutrition by using the latest headlines to sell papers— findings which gyrate wildly. Margarine, fats, carbohydrates, —sometimes they are the villains, causing all sorts of health problems—then they regain or fall out of favor. And the government is under the sway of the agriculture and food lobbyists; federal dietary guidelines and recommendations are compromised and getting worse.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">But don’t stress too much, it’s not difficult to make good food decisions, especially now. Make sure to enjoy yourself, to make eating a pleasurable, slow, and social, function. Follow some simple guidelines, and use your self-awareness to inform you whether what you’re choosing to eat is helping you or causing you setbacks.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Whenever feasible, do your own cooking with organic, local, seasonal, sustainable fruits and vegetables. (Support farmers and the local economy with your money—you are voting for a healthful food system.) Not only can you control the ingredients and the cooking methods, but you are taking an active role in your fight for recovery. Plus you will save money by not eating out. It’s estimated that as much of 2/3 of the cost of medical care in this country is attributable to our poor eating habits. Cooking is a profound way to influence your health: “The best public health tools are a sharp chef’s knife, two cutting boards and a salad spinner.” (Preston Maring, MD, associate physician-in-chief at Kaiser Permanente Oakland)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Restrict wheat, dairy and try to eliminate sugar—but aim for “90-10”: allow yourself some small indulgences to retain feelings of pleasure, since mood affects how you digest. A happily-enjoyed burger is probably providing better-absorbed nutrients than an organic raw kale salad that you are forcing down. Savor what you eat.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Other rules:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Don’t eat food that comes through your car window.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Read labels-- avoid foods with sugar (or sugar equivalent) as one of the first 3 ingredients.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Avoid food with more than 5 ingredients, or made with ingredients you wouldn’t plausibly have in your pantry.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Junk food is fine if you make it yourself. If you had to clean up after every batch of French fries, you’d rarely make them.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Get the best ingredients, from farmers if possible. If you shop in supermarkets, buy only on the perimeter—it’s where they put the freshest food.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Eat until you are satisfied, not full.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Don’t feel like you have to finish what’s on your plate.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Don’t go back for seconds.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Spend more on ingredients, but eat less.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Transparency is important—don’t buy from vendors who are secretive about where their food comes from.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Local non-organic is better than organic from long distances—foreign agricultural practices are unregulated.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Eat food in season—it tastes better, has traveled less.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Eat a rainbow of plant foods—the phytonutrients in the colors are very healthful.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Spend at least as much time eating a meal as it took to prepare it.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Try not to eat alone.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Break the rules occasionally.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Reading List and Web Resources:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">Anticancer</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">A</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">New</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">Way</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">Life</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">New</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Anticancer-New-Way-Life/dp/0670021644/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328737730&amp;sr=1-1">Edition</a>&nbsp;by David Servan-Schreiber MD PhD</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">What</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">Color</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">Is</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">Your</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">Diet</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/What-Color-Your-David-Heber/dp/0060988622/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">?</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Heber/e/B001IU0OM0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">David</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Heber/e/B001IU0OM0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/David-Heber/e/B001IU0OM0/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328721384&amp;sr=1-1">Heber</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">In</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">Defense</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">Food</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">An</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">Eater</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">'</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">s</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Food-Eaters-Manifesto/dp/0143114964/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740367&amp;sr=8-1">Manifesto</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Pollan/e/B000AQ74HQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328740365&amp;sr=8-1">Michael</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Pollan/e/B000AQ74HQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328740365&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Pollan/e/B000AQ74HQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328740365&amp;sr=8-1">Pollan</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">Food</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">Rules</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">An</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">Eater</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">'</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">s</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Rules-Eaters-Michael-Pollan/dp/1594203083/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328740453&amp;sr=8-1">Manual</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Pollan/e/B000AQ74HQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328740451&amp;sr=8-1">Michael</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Pollan/e/B000AQ74HQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328740451&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Pollan/e/B000AQ74HQ/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328740451&amp;sr=8-1">Pollan</a>&nbsp;and Maira Kalman</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Dr. Jeanne Wallace:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">http</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">://</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">www</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">.</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">nutritional</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">-</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">solutions</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">.</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">net</a><a href="http://www.nutritional-solutions.net/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Attitude/Belief/Support:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Last but not least: the goal is not to live forever, nor to return to an old place, but rather to transform ourselves into healthy people, utterly at peace with ourselves, our families and our friends. Create a tradition of peacefulness:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Feel gratitude</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Forgive yourself, lighten up, and loosen your grip. Find some humor in your situation.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Cycle through the Mel Brooks catalog and other comedies.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Connect to others, don’t try to keep everything internal. Cultivate relationships with those who support your healing process and your medical choices.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Be aware of whether someone is being helpful or not—and if not, find a way to marginalize and ignore them.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Develop an immune-competent personality, monitoring and taking care of your own needs, and resisting becoming a self-sacrificing martyr.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Reduce your anger, stress and anxiety.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Don’t do anything you hate doing—if it’s something that you have to do, find a way to re-frame it so that you’re not flooding your system with stress hormones.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Use your illness as a teacher—what it can tell you about medicine, about compassion for yourself and others, and about how to care for yourself.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● An illness is a terrible thing, but with the right attitude it might be a benefit—and it might wind up being the best thing that ever happened to you.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">● Find your true talent, discover your purpose in life. Why have we been put here?</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Reading List and Web Resources:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">Man</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">'</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">s</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">Search</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">for</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mans-Search-Meaning-Viktor-Frankl/dp/0807014273/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1328721501&amp;sr=1-1">Meaning</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Viktor-E.-Frankl/e/B000APVZJU/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328721498&amp;sr=1-1">Viktor</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Viktor-E.-Frankl/e/B000APVZJU/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328721498&amp;sr=1-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Viktor-E.-Frankl/e/B000APVZJU/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328721498&amp;sr=1-1">E</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Viktor-E.-Frankl/e/B000APVZJU/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328721498&amp;sr=1-1">.&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Viktor-E.-Frankl/e/B000APVZJU/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1328721498&amp;sr=1-1">Frankl</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">A</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">General</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">Theory</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">of</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/General-Theory-Thomas-Lannon-Richard/dp/0375709223/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233015&amp;sr=8-1">Love</a>&nbsp;by Thomas;Amini, Fari;Lannon, Richard Lewis</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Cancer</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">As</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">a</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Turning</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Point</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">:&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">A</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Handbook</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">for</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">People</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">with</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Cancer</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Their</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Families</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">,&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">and</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Health</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cancer-As-Turning-Point-Professionals/dp/0452271371/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Professionals</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Leshan/e/B000APK26C/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Lawrence</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Leshan/e/B000APK26C/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Lawrence-Leshan/e/B000APK26C/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1329233069&amp;sr=8-1">Leshan</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">Wellness</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">Community</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">Guide</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">to</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">Fighting</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">for</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">Recovery</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">from</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wellness-Community-Fighting-Recovery-Cancer/dp/0874777941/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">Cancer</a>&nbsp;by&nbsp;<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Harold-H.-Benjamin/e/B001KIRF9A/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_14?qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">Harold</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Harold-H.-Benjamin/e/B001KIRF9A/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_14?qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Harold-H.-Benjamin/e/B001KIRF9A/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_14?qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">H</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Harold-H.-Benjamin/e/B001KIRF9A/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_14?qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">.&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Harold-H.-Benjamin/e/B001KIRF9A/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_14?qid=1329233091&amp;sr=8-14">Benjamin</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter.org/">http</a><a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter.org/">://</a><a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter.org/">www</a><a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter.org/">.</a><a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter.org/">cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter</a><a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter.org/">.</a><a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter.org/">org</a><a href="http://www.cancersupportcommunitybenjamincenter.org/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">http</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">://</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">www</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">.</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">simmsmanncenter</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">.</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">ucla</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">.</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">edu</a><a href="http://www.simmsmanncenter.ucla.edu/">/</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>I’d like you to keep in mind Raymond Carver’s last poem:</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>Did you get what you wanted from this life, even so?<br />
I did.<br />
And what did you want?<br />
To find myself loved,<br />
To feel myself loved, on this earth.</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Stay in touch with your loved ones, radiate peacefulness, and stay part of the conversation.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.michaelstable.com/qigong.html" target="_blank">michael</a><br />
<br />
(<a href="http://www.michaelstable.com/qigong.html" target="_blank"><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">M</span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">ichael Sieverts' Blog</span></a>)</div></div>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-31616624988637771682012-02-06T15:03:00.004-08:002012-07-16T14:45:15.779-07:00Chemo Brain Program, Feb. 21, W. Los Angeles, 7-9 pmI'll be on the panel with Arash Asher, MD and Mi-Yeoung Jo, PsyD, ABPP, both from Cedars-Sinai, along with Karen Saywitz, PhD, UCLA professor of Health Sciences, and Michael Sieverts, CSC instructor and moderator. Hope to see you there!&nbsp;Click on the flyer to enlarge.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
RSVP to the Cancer Support Community<br />
1990 S. Bundy Dr., Ste. 100, Los Angeles 90025<br />
310-314-2555<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-75059312934645532692012-01-23T19:18:00.000-08:002012-01-27T20:38:21.587-08:00What’s Another Name for Chemo Brain?<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Re3FAb8CRrA/Tx4hTaXSj3I/AAAAAAAAAPQ/hxCAKFWsEUY/s200/fog+image.jpg" /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">We follow the New York Times style guidelines and spell it as two words: chemo brain. I’ve also seen it as one word: chemobrain, or chemo-brain.&nbsp; Others call it, “chemonesia,” or “cancer brain fog.” </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">If I were to call it something else, I’d just say, “fog” or “cancer fog.” I don’t think you need to say, “brain." Why be redundant?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In fact, “chemo brain,” doesn’t always mean you've had chemo.&nbsp; I know thyroid cancer and breast cancer patients who've had surgery and radiation only and they still report feeling like a planet of haze has taken over their brains.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">And therein lies what’s so fascinating by this “chemo brain” concept.&nbsp; Studies have consistently shown that about one-third of patients experience some amount of memory and other cognitive impairments even before they go through any kind of treatment, including chemotherapy.&nbsp; Researchers believe that having cancer itself may contribute to the fog as the body fights the disease and is under stress from inflammatory molecules.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It’s also hard for scientists to tease out other contributors, like radiation, anesthesia from surgery, steroids, pain killers, and hormonal therapies.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Adding to the mystery of what’s going on, once these patients then begin chemotherapy, their memory problems get worse before they get better.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">That’s why experts who study the field of cancer and cognition avoid the term, “chemo brain,” and call it "cancer or cancer-treatment related cognitive impairment."</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">That mouthful may be more precise, but "chemo brain" has become shorthand for the fog so many of us have experienced.&nbsp; I'm happy to leave it at that.&nbsp;</span></div>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9165296348512373623.post-60181781760709957592012-01-11T00:01:00.004-08:002012-02-28T18:58:32.414-08:00SOMETIMES ALL YOU CAN DO IS LAUGH<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Have you ever been on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride at Disneyland? If so, then you may have an inkling of what goes on inside the head of my wonderful guest blogger, AnneMarie Ciccarella.</span><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wQ4ejHNJorY/Tw007t0nzvI/AAAAAAAAAPI/3SszWQoztyw/s1600/AnneMarie+Image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wQ4ejHNJorY/Tw007t0nzvI/AAAAAAAAAPI/3SszWQoztyw/s200/AnneMarie+Image.jpg" width="174" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">AnneMarie Ciccarella</td></tr>
</tbody></table><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> Her story below and the posts she writes on her own <a href="http://www.chemo-brain.blogspot.com/">blog</a>, are a fast-moving, completely candid, hilarious, stream of consciousness that pull you right into the daily spins and turns of living with chemo brain. And now, HOLD ON TIGHT. Here’s AnneMarie. -- ID</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>AnneMarie Ciccarella blogs about her adventures at <a href="http://www.chemo-brain.blogspot.com/">www.chemo-brain.blogspot.com</a> and can be found on twitter @chemobrainfog. She is still fine-tuning her direction and until that has been established, her bio simply reads, “Cancer rebel, irreverent blogger, wisecracking dim-twit.” </i><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">AnneMarie Ciccarella</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Guest Blogger</span></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wQ4ejHNJorY/Tw007t0nzvI/AAAAAAAAAPI/3SszWQoztyw/s1600/AnneMarie+Image.jpg"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"></span></a></div><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">&nbsp;When I started to learn about all of this chemo brain stuff, I began to hear certain catch phrases. One of my favorites? “Work-around solution.” A work-around solution is a way out of a jam that wasn’t the intended way, may not provide the exact results you wanted, but it is sufficient. Or, more accurately, you either let it be sufficient, or you continue on the path of I AM DETERMINED TO GET THIS EXACTLY THE WAY I WANTED. <br />
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Well, guess what? There is one choice and only one choice: just go with it already. Uphill battle and your brain is not giving in. Laugh. I’ve learned that my rigid and structured ways just have no place in AD time. (Footnote: AD is my way of referring to the period after active treatment. I decided to adapt the BC:AD calendar to refer to the way cancer has divided my life. If anyone would like to toss out suggestions, I am still playing with what those letters mean…“Another Distraction”…“A(new) Direction”… nothing has really grabbed me yet….. ) <br />
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BRAIN: Come back…. Now, for those who never stood at a bar trying to remember that you like tonic with vodka, allow me to elaborate. You know when you are talking and you hit a brick wall. How many times have you stood in frustration saying aloud, “It’s on the tip of my tongue.” And then, whether it was a word or a movie or the name of a person, you know it’s going to drive you crazy until it comes to you. Sometimes, it will pop into your head. <br />
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You may begin to do some free association: “You know the movie, it starred Robert DeNiro and he was the father with the little kid who grows up… the kid, you know, the kid who was arrested a few years back in real life… oh, this is gonna drive me crazy, it’s on the tip of my tongue!” <br />
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If you are lucky, that will have been enough to either bring the title into your head or, if you happen to be talking to one of my kids, they will provide the title in a split second. Sometimes, it’s something that you may not figure out and it WILL drive you crazy. Back in the day, the choices were: <br />
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• Stop thinking about it and it will come to you (may or may NOT actually happen) <br />
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• Give up and have it pop into your head at the most random moment. <br />
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Today, there is an option “C,” which is my personal favorite: The Internet Scavenger Hunt. Let me see how many combinations of words I have to Google before I have the information. I’ve come to accept this OCD component that seems to be part of my particular case of chemo brain so I will always go with Option C. Maybe you do, too. <br />
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Or maybe one of my kids already helped out so this particular “tip of the tongue” episode passed without really being an episode at all. Or, if you were not quite that fortunate, you might be driving along, sometimes DAYS later and just blurt out the word or title. (Or, you may actually forget the whole conversation and have to apologize to someone for insisting they were crazy, just thought I’d throw that out there….) We’ve all done it. I know you can relate. I can SEE you nodding your heads. <br />
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That is the “it’s-on-the-tip-of-my-tongue dilemma” which is different from word dropping and if you don’t belong to the club, and I hope you never do, word dropping is exclusive to those who reside either in the fog of active treatment or are already in the AD portion of the journey. And, to clarify further, word dropping isn’t a distant relative of name dropping, and btw, I don’t like those people, the name droppers, I mean. <br />
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Word dropping is when the normal everyday word is right there, yes, on the tip of my tongue. I’ll fight for it to catch the train that will transport it from my brain to my tongue. Ok, take a breath. Not today? Time to implement my new skill and most importantly, to laugh at myself in the process. <br />
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What occurs next -- and this is in no particular order – I will either define the word or find a less suitable word. If I define the word, this could come off somewhat smart-assy if my definition sounds identical to the entry one might find in Merriam-Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary (and yes, for the record, there is a copy on my desk, circa 1980). Sometimes, just like the old cliché about books and movies, the book IS better (than the internet). I may attempt to explain the word, a dangerous venture which holds a high degree of probability and I will be completely off topic within the first minute as I have now ventured into the world of What The Hell Was I Saying? <br />
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Alternatively, I will find a less suitable word which always pisses me off because for whatever reason, I DO know the substitute word is missing some small subtle something. (Gee, wonder if subtle and substitute have some connected root word prefix thing going on… going to check on that RIGHT NOW). Having CB OCD, that little nuance is of utmost importance because it does capture EXACTLY the essence of whatever I wanted to convey. When all else fails, I’ll blurt out an SAT word which invariably tends to piss off the person with whom I am speaking. I know they are thinking, "Seriously? Smart ass..," It’s written all over their face and besides, I do read minds. It's a curse. <br />
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Example? I was in the car with my daughter a few months ago and we were driving through some rural areas when a truck caught my eye. Why this was even a topic of conversation, who knows… maybe it was painted a pretty color or maybe we were both punch drunk from being in the car too long. Maybe you just can’t expect the city mouse to drive through cow country even if the city mouse is really living the suburban life. Could it have been I just grabbed the bottle of water beside me? No clue and I am SO DONE trying to figure out how these thoughts just zigzag in my brain. The point is, the truck resembled a concrete truck but it contained water. <br />
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Because I carry an enormous amount of useless information in my head, I knew this. And, I proceed to say something along the lines of, “The truck is transporting potable water.” HUH? WTF? Where did that come from?? Couldn’t you just say “drinking water?” What, you need to show off your vocabulary? But, I didn’t need to do anything… the word “drinking” or any form of it was simply not there. Potable was. I solved the problem by substituting a word. <br />
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That’s a work-around solution, meaning, not really a solution. It’s nothing more than a band-aid. There is a difference between “It’s on the tip of my tongue” and “word dropping.” I know, I do both. Not only can I can feel the difference, I will readily and gladly admit when it’s NOT a CB thing. <br />
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Why do I know? I haven’t a clue. But why must you ask??? The only answer I can offer is this. Perhaps you have great teeth or have been exceptionally lucky or were positively vigilant with your dental appointments?? I, however have a toothache.*** <br />
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***Note: I am well aware this ending makes no sense unless you happened upon a blurb I wrote about attempting to explain the pain of a toothache to someone who has never actually experienced a toothache. It can’t be done. Similarly, it’s not possible to fully understand chemo brain despite how wonderfully it is explained. Some things you simply must experience on your own to get the full flavor! <br />
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Oh…. the movie? Did you think I would leave you hanging??? It’s “A Bronx Tale,” and the actor Lillo Brancato played the part of Robert DeNiro’s son, Calogero, just in case that was right on the tip of your tongue. Should you have any further entertainment questions, IMDB is a great source, or just start Googling words in any and all combos. <br />
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<i>Postscript: <br />
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When Idelle and I first communicated a couple of months ago, I jokingly told her I owned a copy of her book and I’m sure it was one of the first ones off the printing press. As I began to think about what I might want to share on Idelle’s blog, I remembered that conversation. One of the most fabulous things I deal with regularly is a newer issue for me. I have a touch of OCD that seems to kick in all the time: The Details Matter. <br />
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With this in mind, it was ESSENTIAL for me to check Amazon because yes, the minutiae is far more important than the big picture. Thankfully, the good folks at Amazon have their act together and their diligence saved me countless hours of poring over credit card statements to locate the purchase. <br />
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At the very top of the page, I was informed, “You purchased this book on August 9, 2009.” I scanned the page for the publication date. July 14th. Idelle’s book was in my possession before there was a paperback or a Kindle edition. I will be sending my copy to Idelle for author signatures. It’s bound to be on par with Dickens. Yes, unintended but still, yes, a pun on “bound, “ and YES, seriously. The book is as important to “chemo brain” as is Dickens in the realm of great fiction. <br />
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Heartfelt thanks to Idelle for letting me be the court jester for a day and sharing some of my silliness on her blog! &nbsp;-- AnneMarie</i></span>Idelle Davidsonhttps://plus.google.com/105928272059879506027noreply@blogger.com12